Employer telling me I will be self employed?!

vegasvisitor

CakeCrusader wrote: »

I had a 'job' like this, I used it to springboard into something better and reported them to HMRC as the fee worked out at less then the minimum wage. HMRC took their side after they lied so I didn't get anywhere.




Just be careful. Self employed people have no employment rights so they can withdraw work with a moments notice, no right to sick pay etc and in some circumstances work out at less then the minimum wage. It's helpful for experience, but otherwise not so good.

There are no laws on minimum wage in self employment, so there's nothing HMRC would do about the fee they were paying you.

To the original poster - a lot depends on whether you think the fee for the work is fair and if you need to leave employment to go into this. If you're unemployed you are more likely to accept the risks attached to this. Self employment is not all bad, the tax benefits can be really quite beneficial and a tax accountant should be able to advise you how to make the most of your allowable expenses.

CakeCrusader

vegasvisitor wrote: »

There are no laws on minimum wage in self employment, so there's nothing HMRC would do about the fee they were paying you.

It wasn't really self employment, I wouldn't have reported it if it was.

getmore4less

starless38 wrote: »

Hello everyone
Don’t come here often but at a loss.
Had a job interview today during which I was advised if I was offered the position I would be ‘self employed’ and invoicing the company for my working hours each month.

I am not self employed, I don’t contract myself out to companies - I am just an individual who applied for a job with said company!

I’m so confused - I asked so presumably I’ll get no holiday or sick pay and you won’t pay towards my NI Contributions, I was told that was correct.... and I would obviously need to file a self assessment for tax purposes.

Can anyone advise me at all? Is this legal? Do I have any rights whatsoever? Also - should the company have advertised this in the job details on Indeed? It felt like a massive bomb to drop after such a promising interview!

Thanks in advance

As you will be self employed you tell them what rate of pay you want as you are now offering them services, not them offering you a job.

LittleMountain

I’m desperate to learn more on this too as I have been put in the same situation. The employer didn’t even bother to mention the ‘self employed’ element during my 2 interviews. I had to re-read my offer email to make sure I had understood it correctly. It’s as clear as mud.
The possible difference for me is that the role includes a car, laptop, printer, etc, so I am to understand that HMRC would class this as an employed position? (I haven’t phoned them yet as I am awaiting clarification on a few things from the employer so I have more understanding).
More than anything, I feel duped.. I am baffled as to why they wouldn’t declare this from the beginning (and like above, as part of the job advert). I feel like I would be on very bad footing to start a career with a company who a) treats ‘employees’ like this and b) fails to be upfront about the fact!
Gutted. Currently in a job that I loathe and feeling desperate. I am feeling *this* desperate...?

LittleMountain

I would be very interested to learn the OPs company also, or at least what industry/sector.

[Deleted User]

This link should answer your questions:
https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/work/rights-at-work/basic-rights-and-contracts/contracts-of-employment/#h-are-you-an-employee-or-self-employed

A light-hearted (but absolutely true) aside ….. 25 years ago, when my husband was unemployed and job hunting, he had 3 extremely good interviews with a company in Slough. The third "interview" was simply a meet and greet with the head honchos before formally being offered the job. The HR manager came to collect him and they went to his office to discuss "terms". Imagine my husband's surprise when, as they sat down, the HR guy asked him 'So, how long have you had a beard?' My husband laughed and told him all his adult life and his wife would kill him if he shaved it off. The HR guy then told him, in all seriousness, that that would be a problem as the company was American-owned and they didn't allow any of their Sales staff to wear a beard (the HR guy told him that he used to have a beard himself and shaved it off 'to fit in'!). At that point the meeting ended and my husband came home to tell me the bizarre story. He had no redress for his disappointment, of course - "hirsuitism" isn't one of the 9 protected characteristics! We had to chuckle though when, leafing through the company brochure he'd received at his first interview, a lithograph on page 2 of the company's founder showed him sporting the biggest beard you've ever seen! Oh, and the saving grace - we could have ended up living in Slough!!! Every cloud has a silver lining guys …..

DCFC79

LittleMountain wrote: »

I would be very interested to learn the OPs company also, or at least what industry/sector.

That might not be possible as they haven't been back since last month and as they say they don't come on often.

robatwork

LittleMountain wrote: »

I’m desperate to learn more on this too as I have been put in the same situation. The employer didn’t even bother to mention the ‘self employed’ element during my 2 interviews. I had to re-read my offer email to make sure I had understood it correctly. It’s as clear as mud.

Could you post up your offer letter and the job advert - redacted so you don't reveal your details? Would be helpful to see the employer too but blank that out too if you don't feel comfortable.

AngelicKaty wrote: »

The HR guy then told him, in all seriousness, that that would be a problem as the company was American-owned and they didn't allow any of their Sales staff to wear a beard (the HR guy told him that he used to have a beard himself and shaved it off 'to fit in'!).

Was that EDS or IBM? I seem to remember a couple of US IT companies with odd policies like that. Invariably they were founded in a garage by a couple of complete beardy nerds.