Contractors, rights?

Anton17

I'm empoyled as an independent contractor and operate under an umbrella company.
So I'm not technically emplyed by the company I work for and I'm paid by the agency which got me the position.

Is there anywhere I can find a comprehensive list of my rights? Such as if I reveal I am not happy and am seeing other work, can they just cancel my contract and leave me without a job?

Contracting is hell. I really wish I'd done a little more research before taking this job.

kmick

What are your issues? Do they treat you like crap? Hours too long? Beauty about being a contractor is you can move on quickly.

Anton17

No, I quite like the job. Thing is, work has slowed considerably and I'm no longer doing the job I was brought in to do. I'm basically being tossed scraps of work or left doing nothing.

That would all be tolerable if I didn't find contracting such a pain. Doing your own taxes, or paying an agency (quite a lot) to do them for you is a nuisance.
My contracting wage is also quite a lot lower than others in the same company for similar positions. As such, getting no holiday pay is a killer. I took a week off recently and it has almost crippled me.

Added to all that, every other week there seems to be some or other issue leading to my payment being delayed.

I really can't take a lot more of this. And such is my dilemma.

chris85

Anton17 wrote: »

No, I quite like the job. Thing is, work has slowed considerably and I'm no longer doing the job I was brought in to do. I'm basically being tossed scraps of work or left doing nothing.

That would all be tolerable if I didn't find contracting such a pain. Doing your own taxes, or paying an agency (quite a lot) to do them for you is a nuisance.
My contracting wage is also quite a lot lower than others in the same company for similar positions. As such, getting no holiday pay is a killer. I took a week off recently and it has almost crippled me.

Added to all that, every other week there seems to be some or other issue leading to my payment being delayed.

I really can't take a lot more of this. And such is my dilemma.

The agency is your employer really and you should be entitled to holidays as such. I have a few friends doing temp work and they get holidays as from the agency as the law says. I think you should be entitled to holidays anyway especially if your wages are lower. contractors usually get higher wages than the regular staff to as the company do not need to offer benefits and redundancy packages and all that.

How long are you in this particular role by the way?

If the agency is paying you they should be sorting out PAYE and PRSI as any other company would do for you.

Sounds like the agency is a bit of a dodgy one

BostonB

chris85 wrote: »

The agency is your employer really and you should be entitled to holidays as such. I have a few friends doing temp work and they get holidays as from the agency as the law says. I think you should be entitled to holidays anyway especially if your wages are lower. contractors usually get higher wages than the regular staff to as the company do not need to offer benefits and redundancy packages and all that.

How long are you in this particular role by the way?

If the agency is paying you they should be sorting out PAYE and PRSI as any other company would do for you.

Sounds like the agency is a bit of a dodgy one

chris85 I think you are confused about working for an agency and using a different umbrella company to operate through. Depends how its set up, but most likely hes an employee of the Umbrella company. Holidays as a contractor are unpaid, as are sick days. Some umbrella companies keep some of your money back to use for sick days and holidays. agencies pay the Umbrella company and its the Umbrella company that sort out the PAYE and PRSI.

BostonB

Anton17 wrote: »

I'm empoyled as an independent contractor and operate under an umbrella company.
So I'm not technically emplyed by the company I work for and I'm paid by the agency which got me the position.

Is there anywhere I can find a comprehensive list of my rights? Such as if I reveal I am not happy and am seeing other work, can they just cancel my contract and leave me without a job?

Contracting is hell. I really wish I'd done a little more research before taking this job.

You are bound by whats in your contract. You need to read whats in your contract with the agency. They'll be a notice period for either side to terminate the contract. More likely the agency or company will refuse to cancel your contract. That said contract can and so leave contracts all the time. But expect to create some ill will from the agency and the company.

colrow

Anton17 wrote: »

I'm empoyled as an independent contractor and operate under an umbrella company.
So I'm not technically emplyed by the company I work for and I'm paid by the agency which got me the position.

Is there anywhere I can find a comprehensive list of my rights? Such as if I reveal I am not happy and am seeing other work, can they just cancel my contract and leave me without a job?

Contracting is hell. I really wish I'd done a little more research before taking this job.

My advice, fwiw, is don't burn your bridges, they must like you and are maybe expecting more work in, by just keeping you ticking over, otherwise you'd be out on your ear. It happens in my job a lot, they keep me on when times are slack, its boring but the pennies keep coming in, and thats what contracting is all about.

knoxor

to OP,

One question I would ask you is how much experience you have. If you have just left University, it may be too soon to go contracting. That would be one reason why you are being paid less than other contractors in your workplace. Contracting is like any other form of work, the more experience you have the greater your pay will be.

just my thoughts...

kayos

knoxor wrote: »

to OP,

One question I would ask you is how much experience you have. If you have just left University, it may be too soon to go contracting. That would be one reason why you are being paid less than other contractors in your workplace. Contracting is like any other form of work, the more experience you have the greater your pay will be.

just my thoughts...

True to a point. But it also depends on the agency you go with.

The client pays the agency, the agency pays you. Two agencies might get the same money from the client but each agency might pay different to the contractor.

I've seen this first hand when I had a few contractors under me and knowing the rates we paid to the agencies. Easily the best contractor of the lot was with the agency we paid most to. He was how ever far from the highest paid when it came to what he got. Depending on the agency they might be giving you a fair deal or they might be taking a massive chunk of what is coming from the client.