Hiring Contractors

Article by Alex Askew

Many businesses choose to hire contractors as a quick way to gain flexible, skilled and experienced workers. Because contractors are not employed by client organisations, they can be more much flexible and can provide services when they are needed, plus when the requirement for their skills are over they can be easily got rid off with minimal hassle.

Contractors working practices differ to normal employees because unlike employees they don’t need to be micro-managed and are independent in the organisation.

Contractor Skills & Experience

The advantages of employing a contractor is that they already have the skills and knowledge of what the job role requires therefore can adapt quickly to whatever the project requires. Contractors can arrive in an organisation and start work immediately as they won’t require any further training. Highly valued contractors that have rare skills might only be taken on for a very short period of time and then can be got rid of; the advantages of this for a business is it saves them the time and expense of training a permanent employee in them skills.
Contractors can be brought in at short notice to cover busy business periods when there are high volumes of work to be done and can also be much more productive than permanent employees completing tasks significantly faster.

Selecting Candidates

Hiring and firing contractors is very different to dealing with permanent employees. Most employers use an agency to help find the appropriate contractors to hire although it is possible to find contractors directly. Finding a contractor directly is becoming much more common practice for employers thanks to media such as the internet where employers can search for the skills they need via online jobs board and contracting forums. However hiring contractors directly can be very time consuming and there are various pitfalls best left to professional recruitment agencies.
Online job boards are one the biggest sources contractors use to find work, but the similarity with employees ends there. Contractors CV’s and interviews differ to normal employees because the process is usually much shorter and condensed, because good contractors don’t stay out of work for long, so a client has a small window where they can hire the contractor.

Creating Contracts

A contractor is like a business in that they may be operating using their own limited company to trade therefore will want to secure the best contract possible when negotiating. Clients will need to research contractor rates before starting negotiation, so they know what a reasonable rate will be for that kind of work they are hiring for.

Contractors are handled differently than normal employees and are not covered by normal employment legislation. It’s a big advantage for the client to have knowledge of basic contract law so they can spot and resolve potential problems before they arise.
When the contract offer has been made to the contractor by the agent or client it is a legally binding contract. This contract will reflect the relationship between client and contractor.

IR35 & Paying Contractors

IR35 legislation is of huge importance to contractors, as it can have a big effect on how much contractors earn. Contractors may make requests to clients to make sure they don’t conflict with the legislation. It may be of little interest for the clients to carry out any of the provisions requested by the contractor, but clients will keep their contractors happy by completing these small requests.
Clients will also have to keep in mind that they need to keep on top of submitting timesheets, invoices and payments on time, otherwise there contractors won’t get paid. Unlike normal employees contractors don’t receive salary and there wage will need to be authorised by the clients via timesheets and invoices as you would for any other supplier.

Ending & Renewing Contractors

Contractors will likely look for work a month before their contract ends to help maintain a constant stream of work. If a contractor has been performing well in their current job the client may wish to consider renewing the current contract for an additional period. It is common for contractors to wish to renegotiate at the renewal stage, particularly if the market has moved and they can get at better contract rates working else ware.
Unfortunately contractors are not entitled to statutory redundancy pay as they are not protected by employment law as a standard employee would be. Contractors are however protected by commercial contract law meaning if the client decides to terminate the contract early without notice the client will breaching the terms of the contract. However most contractors will have a very short notice period therefore the client can still take advantage of the increased flexibility that they wouldn’t get with an employee.
Conclusion

Contractors are a fantastic resource for businesses requiring quick and highly skilled workers that are flexible and cost effective solutions for the businesses short term needs. Short term contractors can be hired to cope during busy periods and then easily got rid off when not needed without requiring any training for the job role, making them a much more cost effective solution than selecting, hiring and training an ordinary employee.

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General Enquiries: 01253 600140,
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