I really appreciate the fact that so many of the members reinforce that we are INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS and not hired help. The MSCs do not hold guns to our heads to force us to do certain shops at "lower" fees or for only reimbursements. Everybody (including me) wishes naturally that we could make more money for whatever work we do, whether it's MS, free-lance writing, sales, teaching et al. But let's get real. That won't/can't always happen.
If we do our homework, we can pretty much tell whether we'll make our preferred fee based on the time and expenses. If we set a minimum pay standard and the shop does not meet it, we don't have to do it. If we know ahead of time that the shop will not meet it and we still decide to do it, it makes us look less than professional (in my opinion) to complain about it. If a MSC traditionally offers "low pay" shops, it is our choice as to whether or not we take the assignments.
There seems to be a lot of venting and fussing about these issues. I can see some of it sometimes, but after a while we need to be realistic and professional.
I know this post will not make some folks happy, but that is their problem.