Anyone Worried?

[cojak]

As a gatekeeper myself, I’m beginning to get ticked with the gricer sock stable polluting the Professional forums.

Stay in General or find your sockies permabanned.

Thread closed.

[elsergiovolador]

Yeah, but you also aren’t banging on about IR35 with every single post and claiming that everything and everyone is working against poor downtrodden you. Some people around here need to wake up. Contracting isn’t for everyone. If contracting isn’t working, do something else. Become a permie, upskill, ditch agents, whatever, but don’t whine endlessly about IR35. Or create a million sockies that talk to each other.

Great example of gatekeeping you did here.

[jamesbrown]

I have been very lucky in my 15 years of contracting (yeah, I know, still a noob) but I have no illusions that I'm superior to anyone else. I've been in the right place at the right time, my face has fitted in certain environments, and I've made some good contacts with people who like the way I work. One day that will dry up and I don't know if that day will come on Tuesday when I'm having a 'catch up' with the person who brought me into their current client, or some time in the future.

I have always been open to going back to permie work; I just haven't needed to go down that path nor been magically presented with that £150k role that requires minimal effort and comes with final salary pension, 40 days holiday (+bank holidays) and other fluff.

Yeah, but you also aren’t banging on about IR35 with every single post and claiming that everything and everyone is working against poor downtrodden you. Some people around here need to wake up. Contracting isn’t for everyone. If contracting isn’t working, do something else. Become a permie, upskill, ditch agents, whatever, but don’t whine endlessly about IR35. Or create a million sockies that talk to each other.

[The Tartan Cottage]

There is also huge lobby to take as much profit away from you as possible. Everyone is looking to pinch some of that hard earned money. The biggest leech is of course the taxman who thanks to the IR35 changes will be entitled to over 50% of what you make at current market rates and then you have multiple intermediaries, each wanting some of the fruits of your hard work.
At one point you realise there is no more sense in devoting time and energy into upskilling when most of the effects of that hard work will be enjoyed by people who didn't even lift a finger.

Yes, some very good points in your post.

In my last contract, the company blanketed everyone inside IR35 and said everyone was to go through a preferred supplier which wasn’t the agency I was contracted through.

So, because of a 6 month handcuff clause, I had to stick with the original agency but still go through the preferred supplier for timesheets and billing. So the rate increases we were promised as a result of going inside IR35 were a damp squib to say the least as the client had to cut in a new player.

Anyhow, none of this materialised in the end because of certain events.

[ladymuck]

I have been very lucky in my 15 years of contracting (yeah, I know, still a noob) but I have no illusions that I'm superior to anyone else. I've been in the right place at the right time, my face has fitted in certain environments, and I've made some good contacts with people who like the way I work. One day that will dry up and I don't know if that day will come on Tuesday when I'm having a 'catch up' with the person who brought me into their current client, or some time in the future.

I have always been open to going back to permie work; I just haven't needed to go down that path nor been magically presented with that £150k role that requires minimal effort and comes with final salary pension, 40 days holiday (+bank holidays) and other fluff.

[jamesbrown]

Do you believe that you have so great skills (and you will be able to provide substitute that will be equally skilled), that the client will happily bear the risk of investigation of their contracts and opening themselves to investigation?

Do you believe that people who have more common skills (and therefore they can easily find a substitute) and they don't have to deliver the work personally should be paying over 50% of taxes and shouldn't be able to deduct any legitimate business costs?

I believe that you’ll be banging on about IR35 for all eternity while the rest of us deal with it.

[elsergiovolador]

I forgot to mention lack of ambition. Many people in your position saw the writing on the wall years ago and got a permie position or upskilled. Offshoring, intermediating and IR35 are hardly new things and these things are not your problem. Your problem is you.

Do you believe that you have so great skills (and you will be able to provide substitute that will be equally skilled), that the client will happily bear the risk of investigation of their contracts and opening themselves to investigation?

Do you believe that people who have more common skills (and therefore they can easily find a substitute) and they don't have to deliver the work personally should be paying over 50% of taxes and shouldn't be able to deduct any legitimate business costs?

[jamesbrown]

That type of thinking is also part of the problem. Such divided group can be easily conquered. Let's wait when your high value unique and hard to replicate skillset... oh wait - does it mean that the client would need you to deliver the work personally? Enjoy being caught inside.

I forgot to mention lack of ambition. Many people in your position saw the writing on the wall years ago and got a permie position or upskilled. Offshoring, intermediating and IR35 are hardly new things and these things are not your problem. Your problem is you.

[elsergiovolador]

Snooze. It isn’t IR35 that has killed your work prospects, it’s your low value skillset that is easily intermediated and replicated for less money.

That type of thinking is also part of the problem. Such divided group can be easily conquered. Let's wait when your high value unique and hard to replicate skillset... oh wait - does it mean that the client would need you to deliver the work personally? Enjoy being caught inside.

[jamesbrown]

There is also huge lobby to take as much profit away from you as possible. Everyone is looking to pinch some of that hard earned money. The biggest leech is of course the taxman who thanks to the IR35 changes will be entitled to over 50% of what you make at current market rates and then you have multiple intermediaries, each wanting some of the fruits of your hard work.
At one point you realise there is no more sense in devoting time and energy into upskilling when most of the effects of that hard work will be enjoyed by people who didn't even lift a finger.

Snooze. It isn’t IR35 that has killed your work prospects, it’s your low value skillset that is easily intermediated and replicated for less money.