Perm vs Freelance
Source
This month's CP Career comes from Source - a specialist recruitment business, dedicated to the digital, integrated and traditional creative communications industry.
They work to support the needs of advertising, marketing and design agencies, in addition to in-house departments of corporate clients’ and provide permanent, contract and freelance solutions.
Perm or freelance? You decide!
This month's article will help you decide whether your next move in the industry is focussed towards the permanent or freelance side. Jonathan Lindon, MD of Source, will explain the pros and cons of both, leaving it up to you to decide which suits your lifestyle. Maybe you don't know much about freelancing or what you have to do to be successful; this will help clear things up.
Pro's of a permanent job
- Stability
- Consistency
- Routine
- Close Friends
- Paid on the same day every month
- Given the juicy projects
- Get to see projects through from beginning to late stages
- Familiar with brands and clients
- Benefits Package
- Company holidays, Christmas Parties
- Holiday allowance
Cons of a permanent job
- Potentially you can get pigeon holed
- Same routine
- Politics
- Progression can be difficult in tough times
- Last in first out
Pros of freelancing
- Work where you want
- Work when you want
- Work how you want
- High day or hour rates
- Work in suitable locations
- Everyday is different
- Meet different people
- Work on a variety of accounts and projects
- Projects can be extended keeping you busy longer
Cons of freelancing
- No stability
- No consistency
- No Routine
- A freelance booking can be cancelled anytime
- Harder to make friends
- No guaranteed pay date
- Sometimes given dull projects that perm people don't want
- Don't normally get to see projects through from start to finish
- No benefits
- Sometimes put in a freelancers room away from everyone else
- Not always challenging
Types of freelance options available to you
- PAYE
- Limited Company Contractor - Umbrella Company
- Limited Company Contractor - Owner/Director
- Sole Trader
If you work as a PAYE freelancer you will work on the books of the recruitment agencies or the employer. They pay you as you will be employed by them. They pay your national insurance and income tax contributions. You can accrue holiday pay or have it added to your day/hourly rate.
If you work limited through an umbrella company, they pay you. They take a small percentage of your earnings for their troubles of looking after your tax and paperwork. There are lots of umbrella companies - some good, some bad - so make sure you do your research and get recommendations.
If you are the director of your own limited company you will need to get legal advice as you look after your own paperwork and tax which can be complicated to understand (it may be better to engage the services of an accountant for this). You have to register your limited company with companies house and choose the registered company name and trading name if you decide that they will be different. You will be given a registration number, certificate of incorporation and proof of directorship which you need to look after. A secretary will need to be nominated too.
Sole traders were common place but are decreasing in numbers as they struggle to legitimately work through recruitment agencies or direct. They aren't trading solely through a recruitment agency so will have to work PAYE or set themselves up as a limited company. When working direct the sole trader would need to demonstrate a unique skill set, ideally not represented in the companies that they do work for.
The current marketplace
The freelance market has its ups and downs. The winter months can be very quiet and the summer months can be very busy. We tend to see a trend every year where many permanent people leave their jobs to go freelance at the beginning of the summer, then go back to permanent jobs at the end of season. The summer months normally means there is work around but it also means there are many freelancers around to cover most requirements. Another reason why the freelance market increases at this time is to cover people when they are away on holiday and agencies not committing to hiring perm people due to talk of the economic climate.
Contact Source
If you would like to have a further conversation about being a freelancer and how to get ahead, please contact Jonathan from Source.
Or, if you are currently looking for a job take a look at the Source website.
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