Complaint Review: Examiner.com - Denver Colorado

These terms have changed and they state that you have to write at least once a month or you forfeit all your previous earnings. I found that out when they weren't paying me the $35 they owed me. That's like someone missing a days work and consequently forfeiting the previous 3 months pay. It's money owed, money earned, but Examiner has decided NOT to pay up!!!

There is no scam at examiner.com. If you thought you were being hired as a full time writer with a set wage, you either didn't read the material on the website or were so desperate you just assumed it was a full time writing gig. They are a great company that gives aspiring and established writers a chance to get some online exposure for a few pennies a month. There are many sites that would charge you for the same service. This is citizen journalism, nothing more. It gives the everyday joe a voice and an opportunity to validate an opinion or interest. Hope you found a job. Maybe writing an Examiner.com column on job hunting would be an opportunity to clarify and share you job hunting experience.

If Amy from Tempe, Arizona. is so unhappy  about her "salary" in her new job with a start-up www.Examiner.com, and has had a Byline on some 20 articles, why is she reticent about giving her full BYLINE Name??  I have just received  my W 9 from Sarah at Examiner.com to facilitate the first check for my many articles.   I was not concerned what the payments would be, I did not expect much from a START-UP!   Neither did the Founder of FACEBOOK, which has just begun a relationship with www.Examiner.com.  

I am owed over $1300 and they refuse to pay.  Search the internet and you will find thousands of people who increase their earnings only to be denied payment.  Any article or blog you find in support of Examiner.com is a direct result of their PR department.  You will never earn any real money from Examiner, as they will refuse to pay you once you do.

So the "legal" contract I signed was basically saying that making money with this company is unlikely. Gotcha. I don't want people wasting their time trying to make money. I doubt you're an employee, probably some upper management, which is where a company's stupidity usually begins. My recommendation in this economy - stick to job agencies.

When you accepted employment with Examiner.com, you were instructed to watch several training videos, many of which address how, and when, you can get paid. To recapitulate:

1) You need to make $25 before you can be paid, and even then, you are paid the following pay period.

2) Examiner.com explicitly stated that they will not guarantee how much you will be paid.

3) You are responsible for promoting your page; they will not pay you if your article wasn't read, otherwise, why print it? It's a business, not a charitable organization employing otherwise talented writers.

4) They also encourage you to publish often; I believe they say, ideally, 4-5 articles per week, and even so, they need to be substantiative and within your topic.

So, if you wrote 10 articles, didn't self-promote, and did not warrant readership, Examiner.com owes you nothing; If you want your money, I suggest you publish more articles and promote using any social networking sites you may be on, or news aggregate sites like Digg, et. al

Furthermore, you were asked to fill out tax documents that state that you are an Independent Contractor, that means how much, and when, you work is entirely up to you.

I'd hardly call your lack of effort, and apparent inability to follow directions, a "rip off" on the part of Examiner.com