Reply to: Bt

[MrHelpful]

Agreed... for a newbie trying to get into BT as a contractor there is slim to no chance at the moment. They have far too many on the bench (3-4k) and those who were in GS "consultants" are now being transitioned/re-skilled into other areas of BT.

[Stolly]

Hi everyone,
I am new to contracting and am really trying to get into contracting with BT doing network support, hence I'm CCNP etc.

Do any of you's have any advice for getting into BT as a contractor?

Is it unfortunately a case of checking elans website for jobs that come up?

Thanks all for your time

According to my contact in BT there is a freeze on recruitment, and a general push to use less agency staff. They are trying to use the 3k people on the internal bench. Who in my experience are at least 75% deadwood so the best of luck to BT getting these redeployed van drivers etc to be up and running as Cisco and VMware people

[andy_c]

new to it

Hi everyone,
I am new to contracting and am really trying to get into contracting with BT doing network support, hence I'm CCNP etc.

Do any of you's have any advice for getting into BT as a contractor?

Is it unfortunately a case of checking elans website for jobs that come up?

Thanks all for your time

[the_duderama]

What's the lead time on getting paid through Skilstream + Brolly?

I've just managed to complete my first month in Global Services and had my timesheets auth'd etc. However the payment day of this Friday (05/06) can surely not be met as even my Brolly haven't received notification of funds!

Weird

I've always got the funds on the day Elan say I will, and my prolly chaps them to me the same day, so i get the monies in my bank that afternoon, no hassle.

Most of the contractors here are through LTD's - they get the contract checked at each extension as Elan will just send out the standard each time, and as per previous posts it does contain references to BT/Elan as an employer etc.

I like it here, where i work it's pretty cutting edge stuff networking wise, get to work on the largest networks in the UK, and learn how to do enterprise level telecoms/infrastructure/network stuff correctly.

[Stolly]

Worked in BT Operate and contracts weren't great for IR35. went thru Hays.

Finished up there about 3 months ago and all contractors in my area got the heave-ho a couple of weeks later.

Was ok to work there tho but it's the usual as with any former public sector or company with loads of staff who've been there for years, they know their entitlements better than they know how to do their job so plenty of fannying around and politics to get thru but other than that i thought it was fine!

Thats wierd...are you me ?

Some BT gigs are pretty good. Some are pretty bad. I was on one that was pretty bad but dealing with people doing pretty good.

So i didn't take the offered renewal and found something better.

[DaveB]

Seriously, is there anything such as an IR35 friendly contract?

Even if there is, does it really matter?

Furthermore, if it's IR35 friendly today, that doesn't mean it'll be IR35 friendly tomorrow.

No one really knows what constitutes an IR35 contract.

For what it's worth when I was at BT I was working through Abraxus and they were using PCG approved contracts, comeplete with the logo. This was a couple of years ago now though. Probably about as close to IR35 proof as you are going to get.

Best you can do is get it reviewd profesionally and negotiate any changes needed to get the obvious stuff taken care of.

[ChimpMaster]

Seriously, is there anything such as an IR35 friendly contract?

Even if there is, does it really matter?

Furthermore, if it's IR35 friendly today, that doesn't mean it'll be IR35 friendly tomorrow.

No one really knows what constitutes an IR35 contract.

[Ltd ability]

Worked in BT Operate and contracts weren't great for IR35. went thru Hays.

Finished up there about 3 months ago and all contractors in my area got the heave-ho a couple of weeks later.

Was ok to work there tho but it's the usual as with any former public sector or company with loads of staff who've been there for years, they know their entitlements better than they know how to do their job so plenty of fannying around and politics to get thru but other than that i thought it was fine!

[Mephisto]

I'm a Senior Test Analyst (posh for "tester") in Global Services working on a govt contract. Have a desk, but can work from home (in fact we are encouraged to) and I'm often out working on the BT Client's site up in Scotland also.

What's the lead time on getting paid through Skilstream + Brolly?

I've just managed to complete my first month in Global Services and had my timesheets auth'd etc. However the payment day of this Friday (05/06) can surely not be met as even my Brolly haven't received notification of funds!

Weird

[Sausage Surprise]

Can I ask what type of service you are delivering for BT?

I'm a Senior Test Analyst (posh for "tester") in Global Services working on a govt contract. Have a desk, but can work from home (in fact we are encouraged to) and I'm often out working on the BT Client's site up in Scotland also.

[Spoiler]

I'm with BT now...through ELAN. My contract is definitely outside IR35. Skillstream is good fun but have always been paid on time (which is the main thing).

Can I ask what type of service you are delivering for BT?

[Sausage Surprise]

I'm with BT now...through ELAN. My contract is definitely outside IR35. Skillstream is good fun but have always been paid on time (which is the main thing).

[Spoiler]

Thanks for the info. It's an opportunity that may come up, so wanted to see what the score was.

I've got the working practices sorted out fine, but it looks like the contract may be an issue.

[OrangeHopper]

The Tech Mahindra contract is definitely more IR35 friendly than the BT (Global Services) one which I've always regarded as caught.

[Qdos Contractor]

One problem is the huge expense procedure manual that's normally added onto the end of the contract, which contains lots of employment references.