Quarter of employers plan to recruit contractors in 2010
2010 could be a bumper year for contractors and flexible workforce, according to REC. It says that a quarter of those employers surveyed plan to increase their ‘temporary’ workforce in the next year. REC’s Director of Research Roger Tweedy says: “Businesses are naturally cautious about the economic recovery which is why the provision of temporary and contract work will continue to provide a useful outlet.” More…
Contractors touted as UK’s competitive advantage
Contractors are set to benefit from greater publicity as PCG has launched its Brain Gain campaign to educate businesses and the public sector about the benefits of the UK’s flexible workforce of skilled contractors and freelancers. “Using talent on an ‘as needed’ basis is becoming a major competitive strategy,” says PCG’s Head of Public Affair Simon McVicker. More…
CBI welcomes PCG’s expert insights
PCG’s new membership of CBI’s Trade Association Council will provide an opportunity to promote the benefits of using contractors and freelancers to key industry leaders across all major sectors of the economy. According to PCG managing director John brazier, this will help ensure that Trade Association Council members recognise “this important group of workers, freelance contractors and consultants… as important contributors to UK plc.” More...
Contractors need National Insurance reductions
Contactors facing hikes in National Insurance Contributions (NICs) stand to benefit if calls by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) to cut NICs are heeded. In a recent FSB-ICM survey, more than half the small businesses surveyed say high taxes prevent them from taking on staff. This number could include contractors looking to expand their contracting limited companies. More…
Retrospective taxation harming the UK and its economy
Following a string of recent rulings applying retrospective taxation to taxpayers, including thousands of contractors, the Chartered Institute of Taxation has issued a strong warning to Government that the lack of certainty in the UK’s tax system is damaging the UK’s reputation. According to the CIOT’s John Whiting: “The use of retrospective legislation … damages the key principle of certainty in the tax system that is so important to its reputation and is inherently unfair.” He goes on to say: “We are taxed on what legislation says, not what HMRC thinks it says.” More…
Renewed confidence in oil and gas sector boosts contractor prospects
Contractors in the oil and gas, energy and engineering sectors could be in greater demand, as the Oil & Gas UK Q4 Index suggests the sector is gearing-up for investment and expansion throughout 2010. On and off-shore contractors have benefited from improvements in the supply chain, and in the well services, marine, drilling and subsea sectors. “The increase in optimism within the entire upstream sector suggests that investment opportunities are being considered by [exploration and production] companies,” explains Oil & Gas UK’s supply chain director Brian Kinkead. “This is filtering through to increased activity and optimism within the supply chain.” More…
Manufacturing Week to highlight importance of sector to UK economy
The next Manufacturing Week, scheduled to start on Monday 1st March, is designed to ‘debunk the myth’ that the UK has no manufacturing sector. It will also promote the benefits of a skilled manufacturing, technical and engineering workforce, including contractors across the mainstream disciplines of engineering, technical and IT. More…
Latest UK employment statistics show probable increase in number of UK contractors
The latest employment figures from the Office for National Statistics from the final quarter of 2009 show a slight fall of 3,000 in unemployment. But because of the difficulties for contractors in claiming Job Seekers Allowance, it is unlikely those between contracts contribute to the jobless total. However, the statistics reveal that the number of workers in part-time work and self-employment is the highest since 1992 at 1.04m, up 37,000 on the previous quarter; many of these are likely to be new contractors and freelancers. More…
Published: Friday, February 19, 2010
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