Reply to: Contracting in NHS

[edison]

I've worked in seven FTSE100 and Fortune 500 companies and believe me, there were plenty of useless permies and contractors in some of those companies which wasted many millions on IT, you just rarely hear about it in the media.

I've not worked in the NHS but have worked with an NHS trust in a previous perm role and it was a nightmare. It was one of the reasons I left.

I don't think all public sector or not for profit organisations are the same. I've worked in two very good ones.

[Old Greg]

Were you the PM who had his contract terminated immediately and was marched offsite while I was there?

No. But I do remember a contractor (not PM - a midwife IIRC) being marched offsite and left in the street outside the office building when she was clearly have a complete delusional mental breakdown. And there were plenty of doctors in the building as well. That was really shocking - the NHS client said they had no duty of care towards a contractor. I guess it was good for her IR35 status.

[darmstadt]

Sorry about that.

Were you the PM who had his contract terminated immediately and was marched offsite while I was there?

[Old Greg]

I did one contract at the DHSS many years ago, the permies (civil servatns) were great, the techies (us) were great, the consultants (EDS) were useless knobheads.

The next one I did was just a PoC for the NHS, the permies were pretty good, most of the contractors I met were bored tulipless but good at their jobs when they had work to do, the PMs (primarily contractors) were useless big headed twats.

Sorry about that.

[darmstadt]

I did one contract at the DHSS many years ago, the permies (civil servatns) were great, the techies (us) were great, the consultants (EDS) were useless knobheads.

The next one I did was just a PoC for the NHS, the permies were pretty good, most of the contractors I met were bored tulipless but good at their jobs when they had work to do, the PMs (primarily contractors) were useless big headed twats.

[PCTNN]

I have been contracting in NHS for the last 5 months.

It is my first time in the public sector. It is the most crazy workplace i have ever worked. This place is full of cockblocking permies that they have been there forever and they have roots growing from their chairs.. Technically inept, heavily unionized snowflakes , gaslighting, constantly sitting on the fence not making any decisions. Projects that are running in parallel and should be interfacing with each other are completely siloed resulting in massive failures and years of blockages. Eventually they will attempt the same project again and it will be somehow blocked or fail. These people are throwing public money into a massive black hole.

I honestly think i work in a 3rd world country.

Fellow contractors that you have worked for NHS please discuss.

It's all the same in most (if not all) public sector organisations.

Same for me when I was at the Scottish Government; most permies were completely useless and doing very little work, they were just chatting and eating cake. Very cushy job and company pension contributions were around 15-25%...why would anyone want to leave?

The project I was on was a complete disaster and colossal waste of taxpayers' money: permies didn't like contractors and didn't want to work with us, didn't share important info about the project and a few times very conveniently "forgot" to even invite us to meetings.

In 6 months there I probably did 1 month worth of work.

I still take pride in my work, but as soon as I stop caring about it I'll apply for a permie role there and sail through retirement

[SimonMac]

Because most are hired via private-sector contractor bodies.

Not in my experience, lot of outside roles being advertised by PS bodies themselves (actual outside, payment on deliverable rather than T&M etc)

[Old Greg]

I spent more than half my contracting career in various NHS trusts. Worked with good people. Dealt with a few arseholes with a dislike of contractors. Delivered some projects. Saw some money well spent and some money badly spent. Helped save a few thousand lives along the way.

I guess it's not for everyone.

[SueEllen]

I actually thought to go to the papers...But will they listen?

Nope as they suspect it already.

If you went to them showing you did lots of work then it would be a story.

[TwoWolves]

I suspect people with more than one young child and/or a older person they are the carer of will take those roles.

The former is me. I quit Investment Banking because of it but there are middle-path solutions.

[TwoWolves]

New IR35 rules have been in the public sector for years, has had some impact but not like you suggest

Because most are hired via private-sector contractor bodies.

[SimonMac]

It's a similar story throughout most of the public sector.

The few projects that do make it are entirely contractor driven which is why IR35 is going to have a considerable impact on this sector, nobody is going to want to go inside/permie in these places unless they are hopeless themselves.

New IR35 rules have been in the public sector for years, has had some impact but not like you suggest

[scooterscot]

Did work for a MOD department once, it was awful. Don't think I'd be allowed to say which on here, DV cleared for it, suffice to say there was a lot of ar$e covering from top to bottom with money flowing out the door quicker than a water. Entrenched workers as you say, protecting their own; can't see beyond their needs for the greater whole. Or they were just plain fraudulent.

Followed it up with a job in the RN, completely different experience oddly enough. Really comes down to the people.

[Michail]

lashing out 'cos you've been canned then eh?

Not really,

It was 5 months of free money as they did not let me do any work.

I actually thought to go to the papers...But will they listen?

[SueEllen]

It's a similar story throughout most of the public sector.

The few projects that do make it are entirely contractor driven which is why IR35 is going to have a considerable impact on this sector, nobody is going to want to go inside/permie in these places unless they are hopeless themselves.

I suspect people with more than one young child and/or a older person they are the carer of will take those roles.