There has been a huge rise in the popularity of self-employment in the form of freelancers and contract workers, rising from 3.3 million people in 2001 to 4.8 million in 2017, with benefits to both, which are fast becoming a workforce in their own right with the rise of the Gig Economy in the UK.
One of the main aspects which is mutually beneficial to both employee and employer is the flexibility to the nature of the work. This gives the employee a personalised, flexible time schedule and the employer the same flexibility.
There are also further enormous cost savings, as employers only pay workers for the allotted amount of work completed at times of higher demand for their business. It’s a win-win situation.
In recent times however, it has become even more important to make sure that both employers and workers do not fall foul to IR35 Legislation. This UK tax law ensures that all parties avoid being caught out by ‘disguised employment.’ IR35 is important, as non-compliance could see employers falling foul to the Criminal Finance Bill, which can lead to hefty penalties.
However, freelancers and contract workers are becoming an increasing asset to a multitude of industries; so long as they are not for all intents and purposes ‘full time workers,’ simply working on a freelance type of tax basis, there is a multitude of benefits for workers and employers.
Working for a UK Umbrella Company
Contract workers and freelancers who work for a UK umbrella company, although charged for this service, will drastically reduce the stress of self-employment and all that it brings. Umbrella companies alleviate many of the hassles that burden most employers, such burdens including:
- The organising, sending and follow up of invoices
- Ensure workers remain compliant with UK employment and tax laws, mainly around lR35
- Safeguarding both worker and clients from the Criminal Finance Bill
- Arranging National Insurance (NI) payments, personal and income taxes
- Accountancy services
The Transparent Umbrella Company handle all of these stresses which is likely to subsequently free up work hours for you to earn more. an umbrella company doesn’t only deal with the tedious side of contract and freelance work, but can also increase productivity and time-efficiency at very little cost. The Transparent Umbrella Company charges the lowest prices on the market, at no more than £5 a week or £1 per shift.
Which Industries Use Freelancers and Contract Workers?
In this day and age, with the drastic increase in self-employed workers and a raised awareness of their benefits to both employees and employers alike, there many industries that favour using freelance and contract workers, allowing all parties to reap the benefits of this growing workforce.
Although most industries and sectors do now use both outsourced freelance and contract workers at least to some extent, some industries lean towards this type of working arrangement over others:
IT and Programming – Diverse in potential roles, the computer and IT sector is one of the top employers of freelancers and contract workers, and includes:
- Software Developers: Creating software and computer applications for a client’s company
- Security Analysts: Ensuring the computers of such clients are secure, and all sensitive data and networks are protected within their company
- Computer Hardware Engineer: Designing and further developing new components to client’s computers, such as processors, memory and circuit boards
- Computer Support Specialist: Helping clients and their employers technical support in addition to maintenance of a company’s network and computer system
- Database Manager: Involved in the organisation, management and maintenance of a company’s database
Medical and Healthcare Roles – Ranging from medical doctors to writers, freelance work in the medical and healthcare field is as abundant as it is diverse:
- Research Doctors: Including medical doctors hired for their expertise to be involved in specific, one-time only research projects
- Medical Promotional Writer, involved in the promotion and advertisement of certain drugs and/or medical equipment, typically focused towards the medical and health care professional sphere, however some literature does bleed out into the general public
- Medical Educational Writer, involved in the writing of informative pieces of literature to educate professionals in both the medical and health care professional field
Administrative Jobs – Administration roles cover a broad range of topics, with freelance work being no exception to this:
- Web Development and Management: Involved in the maintenance, development and organisation of clients’ websites
- Secretarial and PA (Personal Assistant): Covering a broad range of jobs, these jobs typically entail working on various administrative tasks including the organisation of accommodation and travel arrangements, meetings, emails and work calendars
- Retail – Freelance jobs within retail cover a broad range of roles:
- Retail Merchandiser: Involved in the development of sales, visual displays in client’s stores and the study of buying trends
- Retail Assistants: Involved in the daily preparation of the shop, the answering of customer questions and dealing with customer complaints, management of tills, conduction of sales and overall helping in a smooth day of sales for a client’s products