Need some help but don't want to employ someone? Short-term contract?

[springlamb]

There are times when I would like some temporary help for, perhaps, a couple of weeks if I have a big project on. I don;t particularly want to put someone on my payroll for a period such as this.
Can I write up a short-term contract for, say, two or four weeks and pay them gross (leaving them to deal with their own tax/ni)? I would probably need to do this about 4 times a year. Will we run into problems re self-employment?

What do those of you who contract to carry out a project on someone else's premises do? Are you self-employed? What happens about the rule that if you spend most of your working time in the same place you are an employee?

I don't want to break the law, or get any prospective worker into trouble. But not too keen on employing again.

You could use a recruitment agency for short term help - you pay the agency not the 'employee'.

What sort of work are you talking about?

Others better qualified than me can speak about the legality and HR of this, I should think.

But in principle this should be fine - you're simply contracting out a task, which you'd either pay a self-employed person or another company (ie someone set up as a small firm) to do. It's the way I work, anyway.

I recently hired a self-employed worker for a project on someone else's premises (having costed her into the job first and sought agreement from the contract manager) - I invoiced the client and was paid for the job. I paid the self-employed worker when she invoiced me.

I'm just about to contract out another job to a self-employed person in just the way you suggest, this time to be carried out on their premises using their equipment and will pay them in the same way, on receipt of an invoice, although this task is directly related to the running of my business rather than a small part of a project I've been contracted to do.

If it's a self-employed person I'd put on the job description/contract - 'you will be responsible for your own tax and NI'. If it's a ltd co I wouldn't bother with that part.

Hope this is helpful.

I know it is boring but you may need to think about insurance too. If your work requires you to have professional indemnity insurance (and possibly public liability insurance and employers liability insurance) then you need to know whether sub contractors are coved under your insurance or whether you need them to take out their own PI insurance.

Hi springlamb. Where are you and what are you looking for? I am self-employed as an independent schools consultant but work is quiet just now (not surprisingly) and so I am available for short term work, on the basis you describe - i.e. I am responsible for my own NI and tax. I have had a variety of experience and can turn my hand to most things. Do get in touch if we might be able to help each other ......

Could you get someone to do this freelance? I've recently been doing freelance work for someone who can't afford to employ me.

Have a look at PeoplePerHour - there are all sorts of short term contracts and freelancers on there. No need to make anyone an employee - just a contractor.
The only working for one company thing (IR35 legislation) only really applies if ALL your income comes from a single client, and you are, in effect, an employee....