Why Join
We, translators around the world provide our services on a freelance basis. Our services which are needed more and more thanks to the amazing expansion of trade and human relationship promoted by the Internet, are paid for as per an agreed fee decided by the entity that orders the work and us.
We are required to be as good as good can be. To deliver the work on time. To be punctual. To be educated in many fields in order to produce a good copy. In short, we are required to be professionals.
Most of us are.
Yet, many entities we are dealing with are not. Some of them are no better than just scams into which some of us fall, sooner or later, in spite of all the precautions we take.
We are, in many aspects, suffering the loneliness of the long-distance runner.
But not anymore. Following are some of the major benefits from being a member of the Translators Bar.
Translators Bar is an organization formed to bring all translators together into a unified and recognized entity. Even the use of the word BAR, is intended to remind us and the world, of the well-known veteran organizations of lawyers who belong to BARS in their homeland.
So why not use, translator. Now we have a Bar of our own.
Here are some advantages that belonging to our Bar may provide:
Payment recovery: When we do our work honestly in a dedicated manner, we expect to be paid. How frustrating annoying, angering and exasperating it is, when the due date for payment has arrived and no money comes in. Agencies may simply disappear, delay payment until, so they hope, you’ll get tired from asking for it again and again, or simply have an excellent excuse: the client did not like your work.
So what can we do? Take a trip to the place where the agency is located, enter their office and demand the payment? It is practically not possible. Most of us don’t even have the physical appearance that may evoke respect from a debtor to the point where if you enter their office, they’ll write you a check on the spot.
So what do we do? Forget the payment and go on? Maybe. But not anymore. As a member of Translators Bar, we’ll take care of you, and we have many means to do so you can get your money, or at least part of it. Being a member also let you interact with other translators, inform them about agencies that don’t pay, are late or conduct their business in an insulting manner to the translator. You will also be informed by other of similar situation. When you are approached by a new client, you can ask for the opinion of your peers, as per the payment history of this client, so you don’t waste your time doing one job, rejecting another because you are busy with the first one, and then receive no payment. And if there are no translators who have experience with this new client, we will activate our sources to find the answers for you, before you take on a job from someone you have no payment history with.
You want your money and we want you to get it. We have the power to do things that one person can never achieve. As an organization we are powerful and you can share and benefit from this power.
For more about payment recovery Click Here.
Certification: Many times, when a new agency (client) offers you a job, they may ask for references, or any particular professional certifications. Indeed, there are some organizations which certify you. None of them is functioning under any law. These are organizations or businesses, which may run you through a certification and provide a document. What does this certification consist of? Simply passing a test that shows your skills as a translator. But what if your language is not included in their list of certification? What if for example, you need to be certified as a translator of Sanskrit to Greek? Most likely they have no one to test you.
We are taking a different approach which may help any translator, no matter in what language he or she works. We call it Peer Certification. When you go through a Peer Certification, you colleagues somewhere in the world, are evaluating your skills. We use 3 different experienced translators who check the test copy, without knowing who is the translator. The average of the three opinions is weighted and if you pass a score of 70, you are certified in the language you choose. Then we of course will send you a nice diploma certificate, of which you may see a sample copy by clicking here.
It is not just simpler, but also more fair to translators and does not require you to spend money or lengthy or cumbersome studies, which have very little to do with the translation work itself. You only pay for the test, since we have to pay the tester. (Yes, you may happen to be one of the testers in due time)…
For more about certification Click Here.
Discounted Tools: The profession of translation progressed side by side with pother technologies which use computer to facilitate the work. There are plenty of tools, i.e. software programs, that are used to day to expedite the work, make it easier and more professional. The problem is that such programs, since they are designated for professionals, are costly and many translators refrain from acquiring them due to their high cost.
Our member will enjoy reduced prices and also much easier purchase terms, that we are negotiating and obtaining for our members.
For more details about Discounted Tools Click Here.
Professional Interaction: As professionals who are involved in a very delicate yet not precise profession (meaning 10 translators may have a different version of the same original text, not like in mathematics where 2 plus 2 is always 4…), it is so helpful and educating to enjoy input from other translators in your language, or even direct help, when you encounter any problem.
Our member will be able, through the many friends they will acquire in our community, to help and be helped as they wish, and thus expand their experience and knowledge to become a better translator as the days pass.
Besides the direct help in issues of translation, the exchange of information regarding agencies, can save you a lot of anger and frustration in the future. Translators who experienced a bad agency will immediately announce it to the others, or directly respond to inquiries by a colleague. This by itself is worth all the time in the world.
For more info about Professional Interaction, Click Here.
Professional References: Many times, you are asked for references, before being assigned a new project. Who are better to reference you than your own colleagues? This can be easily achieved by a small request from all your friends in our Translators Bar Community.
Can you place a value on that?
For more info about Professional References, Click Here