What Are the Benefits of Being a Contractor?
Are you thinking about making a move into contracting? Take a look at our guide to discover the top benefits of being a contractor.
Higher Take-Home Pay
Contractors tend to earn higher gross pay than employees. This higher rate of pay is because contractors tend to be hired on a short-term basis and to make up for the fact that they are not entitled to employee benefits such as sick pay or annual leave. What’s more, contractors are paid for every hour or day that they work whereas employees are paid a salary.
Factors that can boost your rate of pay include:
- You have high-level skills that are hard to find
- The project needs to be completed at short notice
- The location of the contract
- The state of the industry in which you work,
- The state of the market in general
- Your level of experience
If you engage the services of a specialist tax accountancy firm, they will be able to advise you on how to further maximise your take-home pay. They can help you to make your limited company structure as tax-efficient as possible and show you how to offset your business expenses against your income.
To find out how much you could be earning as a contractor, download a copy of Berkley’s 2022 Contracting Rate Guides.
Experience & Skills Development
Whereas “job-hopping” is frowned-upon for permanent employees, it can actually enhance the employability of contractors. As most contracts are project-based they tend to be quite short in duration. This means that contractors can work for many different clients in a short period of time. This allows them to build experience quickly and gain new skills. What’s more, they will gain exposure to many different projects, management and working styles. Over time, you will find that you have built up an extensive bank of skills, experience and connections. This will boost your attractiveness to employers and allow you to increase your rates.
Freedom & Flexibility
One of the key benefits of being a contractor is that you are your own boss. The organisations you work for will be your clients rather than your employers. As such, you will enjoy more freedom and flexibility than employees. Perhaps the biggest offshoot of this is that you will have greater control over when and how you work. You can structure your working week, month and year around your lifestyle; meaning that you can take breaks for travel, further education or simply to spend more time with the people you love. Contracting roles also tend to be more likely to offer flexitime and/or remote working – giving you yet more freedom in how you organise your working life.
Avail of New Opportunities
In recent years, numerous industry pundits have highlighted contracting as a key trend in the future of work. The ongoing pandemic has only accelerated the rate with which organisations are adopting the contingent labour as they seek to increase the agility of their workforces. As contingent workforces become more common, opportunities will continue to grow. This will put experienced contractors will be at a clear advantage.