Re: FWD: Contracting where you used to work

[Elna Tymes <Etymes -at- LTS -dot- com>]

"Marc A. Santacroce" wrote:

> >Has anyone had this experience of going back to work on contract for a
> >company where you were previously full-time? How does it change your
> >relationships with your (remaining) coworkers and your supervisors? How
> >do you determine a fair rate? Any pitfalls to watch out for?
>
> I'm pretty sure this is a red flag to the IRS. They will still consider you
> an employee for tax purposes, and can come down hard on the employer. I'm
> not an accountant, you should consult one before committing to this
> contract.

Not so.  It may have been so several years ago, before the IRS got downsized
and simultaneously got a mandate to be nicer to the customers, but it hasn't
been that way for at least four years.

If you want to go back to work as a consultant for the company where you were
previously an employee, be sure you have a contract stipulating that you are a
contractor, and as such you are responsible to the terms of the contract and
are specifically NOT an employee of the company for which you'll be doing the
work.  Also make sure that the contract has specifics like deliverables,
milestones, when you get paid, etc.

How does it change your relationships with your remaining coworkers and
supervisors?  It doesn't have to change your relationship with your them except
for the fact that you're now governed by the terms of your contract, not your
previous employer/employee relationship.  You may find, however, that your
coworkers tend to regard you with an 'us/them' attitude, since in some places
contractors are viewed as outsiders.  You may need to be sure your supervisors
understand the terms of your contract, since they may not be able (under
contract terms) to give you orders any more.

As for rates, that varies widely with geographic area and prevailing rates at
the time.  Here in Silicon Valley, senior writers were able to get in excess of
$85/hr a year or so ago; nowadays they're lucky if they can get $65/hr, IF they
can find anything at all.

Elna Tymes
Los Trancos Systems


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