Expert Advises Contractors To Prioritise

Contractors and freelancers should stay organised by keeping to-do lists and prioritising tasks according to Doreen Martel; an independent contractor herself who has many years experience working within the marketplace.
Writing for Helium, Doreen observed that a careful approach to planning the completion of tasks can pay dividends. She said: “Freelancers who maintain a carefully thought [...]

PCG Warn Of HMRC’s Ulterior Motives

Contractors working via their own limited company have been advised by the PCG to ensure they are not caught under the IR35 legislation and ensure all new contracts are reviewed by an IR35 expert. This warning has come as the PCG have noticed that HMRC appear to be adopting a more devious approach to tax [...]

Contractors In The Construction Industry To Suffer

When the UK economy fell into recession, contractors in the construction sector were one of the first to suffer and even now as the economy emerges from recession, a report has detailed that they are likely to continue to struggle to source suitable roles.
The latest Construction Trade Survey published 9th August 2010 has shown a [...]

Oil and Gas Industry Did Not Bypass The Recession

There were claims that the oil and gas industry would be unaffected by the recession and global economic crisis but those working in the industry have disagreed. They say in the past 18th months, the sector has most certainly been affected.
There has been a decrease in the volume of design work, leading to fewer opportunities [...]

Contract Positions Continue To Increase

Earlier this week, the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) in partnership with KPMG, published their latest report on jobs in the UK.
The results were mixed; good news is that both permanent and temporary roles have increased in June but the rate of growth has slowed down. Demand for highly skilled contractors continued to increase with [...]

HP Slashes Permanent Staff But Retains Contractors

Hewlett-Packard, the multinational information technology corporation, have announced they are slashing 934 permanent roles from its 16,500-strong UK workforce. However, they have chosen to retain almost 2,000 temporary staff and contractors.
The technology giant announced the cull as part of the company’s plans to cut 9,000 jobs worldwide and further job losses should be expected.
Although good [...]

Most Expensive UK and Worldwide Cities Revealed

A Cost Of Living Survey conducted by Mercers has revealed the most expensive cities to live in, both in the UK and worldwide for expatriates.
The survey covers 214 cities across the world and measures the comparative cost of over 200 items in each location. These include housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment. New [...]

Could Contractors Be Affected By The Immigration Cap?

Home Secretary Theresa May has announced that the number of skilled workers allowed into the UK from outside the EU is to be cut, which posed the question, could this affect contractors?
The cap will apply to highly skilled migrants and skilled workers in certain categories of job. It does not apply to workers from EU [...]

Do Your Clients Pay On Time?

A contractor recently asked for some advice regarding a client not paying on time. The contract between the contractor and client stated 30 day payment terms but the client has been taking over 90 days to pay an invoice for their work.
A contractor will often sign a contract before they start working for a client. [...]

Small Business Minister, Mark Prisk, Signals End to IR35

In an interview with the Daily Telegraph, Mark Prisk has signalled that IR35 could be abolished. Speaking after the emergency budget, the small business minister said the small business taxation review, which includes IR35, will commence this summer.
The coalition government wanted to make sure that they could undertake a comprehensive review of small business taxation [...]