Union/Agency for the protection of Contractors

[NorthWestPerm2Contr]

I am just about to enter my first contract in the exciting world of contracting and am wondering if there is anything out there for our protection or are we just disposable staff?

[HairyArsedBloke]

I am just about to enter my first contract in the exciting world of contracting and am wondering if there is anything out there for our protection or are we just disposable staff?

[Tingles]

You are a business, part of the capitalist system.

If you need looking after get a job in the NHS.

[RichardCranium]

A Dilbert cartoon a few years ago has the Pointy Haired Boss (PHB) walking down the corridor with a body over his shoulder.

Dilbert says to him: "Why do you throw the contractors in the skip when you've finished with them?"

PHB: "They're too big to flush".

And that's how it is.

[suityou01]

I am just about to enter my first contract in the exciting world of contracting and am wondering if there is anything out there for our protection or are we just disposable staff?

Please don't feed it.

[Toolpusher]

I am just about to enter my first contract in the exciting world of contracting and am wondering if there is anything out there for our protection or are we just disposable staff?

One of these will work pretty well.

[Numpty]

if there is anything out there for our protection or are we just disposable staff?

[RichardCranium]

I am just about to enter my first contract in the exciting world of contracting and am wondering if there is anything out there for our protection or are we just disposable staff?

Would you like a sensible answer now (to your remarkably naïve question)?

Assuming you are working through a LtdCo of which you are a Director...

You will be a salaried, permanent employee of YourLtdCo. (YourLtdCo then sends you to ClientCo sites to do work.) This gives you (almost) all the employment rights any other permanent member of staff. For example, you are protected by the European Working Hours Directive (or whatever it is called) and Health & Safety protection. You are entitled to all the same screen breaks and free eye tests and ergonomic stuff and sick pay and holiday leave that anyone gets.

However, you are unlikely to ever pay yourself Statutory Sick Pay (although I don't know why). Or impose a particular number of days leave. And all those benefits must be paid for by YourLtdCo, not by the agency or ClientCo.

You can sue your employer for abusing you. However, as the Director, you will be suing yourself. There are occasions, however, when people actually do that (typically to claim off an insurance policy).

All the time you are contracting - including when on the bench - you are an employee of YourLtdCo. You will never be an employee of anyone else. So you will not be able to claim employee's rights from anyone else, such as the agency or the ClientCo.

So, you as a human being are protected by employment law. For example, if ClientCo tells you to do manual labour, refuse and tell them you are neither trained nor insured to do so. If ClientCo says you must work 140 hours a week for 3 months, YourLtdCo can tell ClientCo that YourLtdCo will not permit you to work hours in excess of the Euro-limit on hours. If you get injured because of stupidity in the workplace, you are to be treated like a permie. (If you cause an injury in the workplace, expect to be treated harder than a permie!)

But as far as ClientCo is concerned, you are nothing more than a disposable piece of meat.

Does that help?

However, if you go PAYE through the agency, everything is different.

[DiscoStu]

I am just about to enter my first contract in the exciting world of contracting and am wondering if there is anything out there for our protection or are we just disposable staff?

Aww bless. You really should have done a bit of research first

[Pondlife]

Aww bless. You really should have done a bit of research first

You know where you've gone wrong here, don't you?