Stay as a PAYE Employee, or start Contracting?

[reece240692]

Even so, I'm still convinced by the other benefits, plus it might mean I get better pay and get paid more often

[RSoles]

'A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest'

You're not listening.

Your employer sees a way of saving employers NI, pension contributions and sick pay, parental leave, holiday pay, redundancy pay, etc. by letting you pay it.

It's a trap, get out.

[TheDandy]

Even so, I'm still convinced by the other benefits, plus it might mean I get better pay and get paid more often

Respectfully, you are not making any sense. You effectively suggest that you would leave work on a Friday afternoon as an employee and arrive back on Monday as a contractor, on an as yet unknown daily rate. Exactly what 'other advantages' are you saying you will get if you work there as you have been doing for years already? Just calling yourself a contractor (particularly in this situation) doesn't make it so.

[reece240692]

It was them who suggested this so I'm just exploring the idea, as i said earlier I'm attracted by the fact I could work flexibly and not have to depend upon one employer/client for a source of income

[stek]

Even so, I'm still convinced by the other benefits, plus it might mean I get better pay and get paid more often

Might? You need more than might...

What's your current salary? Then we can show you some figures as to what you should be aiming for and show you what you can claim/can't claim.

[reece240692]

Might? You need more than might...

What's your current salary? Then we can show you some figures as to what you should be aiming for and show you what you can claim/can't claim.

well my current salary is 18k so I'm looking at maybe 180-200 per day

[malvolio]

well my current salary is 18k so I'm looking at maybe 180-200 per day

So you'll get around £2.5k a month take home then. For effectively 10 months a year, since you don't get paid for time off.

And the equivalent salary is closer to £150 a day if - as is very likely - your employer wants to keep to the same outgoings. Which is about £1800 a month. For 10 months...

But hey, you're not going to listen.

[reece240692]

Then surely I'd be better off? I'm trying to consider all angles here, I'm taking people's advice but I'm also trying to think about what's best by looking at it from all angles, not just the negative ones

[original PM]

In essence unless you get a rate of 350 per day plus then it is a bad deal.

How long have you been working as a perm there.?

[TykeMerc]

Let's see:-

Friday to Monday contractor so 100% IR35 caught = very little tax benefit from working as a contractor.
You're talking about a sub £200 day rate = not really worth taking on the risks of contracting at that rate.

You lose out on - Paid holiday, sick leave, bank holidays, training, pension, insurances, redundancy rights, guaranteed pay if there's no work for you and promotion prospects.

Your employer gets, while their experienced worker is retained - No employers NI liability, no benefits to pay for (the list of the stuff you lose) and best of all if they run out of work for you on a Wednesday afternoon they can (I promise you they WILL) tell you to go home and you won't get paid, they may even decide they no longer need you full stop and it's bye-bye for good.

Oh, plus you get to do all the admin of running your own business unless you go with an Umbrella in which case you will be worse off in real take home terms than with your employer.

At £500 a day it's a no brainer thing to do, sub £200 it's a boneheaded move with you losing out and your employer laughing all the way to their favourite holiday destination.