The Linguist

@Linguist_CIOL OCTOBER/NOVEMBER The Linguist 21 FEATURES Some clients expect us to set aside half or even full days for these trials, which take place at some unspecified hour during those time periods! Where clients are willing to pay us for our trial time, this will often only amount to time actually worked, and not the entire half day they have asked us to set aside. Again, this is a matter for client education and prior negotiation of specific terms and conditions to cover these eventualities. In that way, all time – inclusive of any on 'standby' – is paid. When it comes to remote platforms, some clients have little or no idea how they actually function. I was initially naive enough to believe that after two tech practices the client would be alright on the night. They weren't! They forgot (yet again) to assign me as the interpreter at the beginning of the event. This meant that when I finally got going I was very much on the back foot. So much for trying to cover all bases in advance! Bigger pools, more fish The number of same-day RI assignments being offered seems to be increasing. Gone are the days when travel constraints made it impossible to take on more than one booking in any given day. Interpreters are now accepting several short same-day jobs, as long as they are reasonably spaced out time-wise. Not only this, but we are now able to source jobs that would previously only have been notified on a geographical (local interpreter) basis so as to cut down on interpreter travel costs. Now it doesn't matter where we are. It follows that with a bit more effort and research, we can now cast our nets beyond our normal comfort zones. Of course, the downside is that interpreters living in Lyon can compete for London jobs and vice versa, which means that there are more little fish in bigger pools. A related trend is that more remote jobs are being notified at short notice. Instead of being given days or weeks to prepare, interpreters may now have just hours. More same-day jobs, and reduced or non-existent preparation time, are surely a recipe for reduced quality. Interpreters should be very careful about allowing themselves to be put into this sort of situation, and should do their best to warn clients about the impact on quality where there has been no advance sharing of materials such as PowerPoints and speeches. No matter where we are based, protecting our WFH location, from a confidentiality point of view, is crucial. This may be difficult, if not impossible, where family members (and neighbours) are also WFH. The solution is not as simple as just closing the door or window and never interpreting in the garden. It is more likely to involve the creation of a professionally sound-proofed working space, for example by using soft furnishings, draft excluders and acoustic fabric panels to prevent our voices from carrying. Clients and interpreters should both aim to protect confidentiality, but it is unlikely that guarantees can be given in WFH situations. When clients want to record the session it presents another legal minefield. Our prior written permission should always be sought, because our voices are our intellectual property. In addition, the purpose of the proposed recording should be clarified. For example, is it for the client's internal training within their company or for external marketing use? We should be including terms in our contracts to the effect that we own the copyright to any recordings of our voices, and that payment for recordings and royalty fees for repeated use will be charged to the client. There is so much to think about post- Covid for those who are WFH and carrying out RI. This is just for starters! To share your experiences email linguist.editor@ciol.org.uk. SET-UP COSTS Ensuring a home office is fully sound-proofed, with all the required equipment, can be difficult

• Cover