Succinct and poignant. I, myself, have done a lot of hodgepodge work and never for huge companies. The rates have varied from decent to miserable. The good jobs pay $500.00 + for a full day’s work, even working for individuals.

I’ve had the same experience. I was once hired as a pseudo art-director for a tiny startup that initially excited me, but the amount I wound up working put my rates at less than two dollars an hour. Let me tell you, that is some dismal math. The salt in the wound that finally forced me to break contract and burn that bridge was how badly they mismanaged me. I was the constant subject of micromanagement and nitpicking revisions; the guy who hired me essentially made himself into a bottleneck for my workflow, compounding the issue of time investment with costly meetings and reviews.

In my experience, respect translates to money. If a client can’t offer you money, he/she will offer you latitude instead. If you’re not being offered either, then your client probably doesn’t value your welfare or your work.