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Hi lads , pretty simple question really for those that have worked as an employee for a company and as a self-employed person .
What do you see as the pro’s and con’s of the two situations ?
I’m not interested in starting on my own or anything , but working for a big company , i’d just like to see the differences between my position , where everything is fairly organised for me and the things that self-employed people have to go through to get a day’s work sorted out .
Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
As someone who has done both I will kick off with a few pros & cons. Others will no doubt have their own ideas. 🙂
Employed..
Advantages.
Company vehicle. Possibly laptop, mobile phone, all office costs, all spares provided for you. Call allocation/work load sorted for you. Company pension. Paid holidays. Sick pay. Tax & Nat Insurance sorted for you.Full technical backup.
Disadvantages…
Someone one your back all the time telling you what to do, performance targets, not being able to chose your customers.………………………………………………………………………….
Self Employed.
Advantages.
No one standing over you telling you what to do.
Ability to pick and chose your customers/workload/type of work.Disadvantages.
Responsibility for everything from top to bottom. arranging workload, vehicle,stock, stationary.
All paperwork, collecting payments, paying all bills, accounting, inc tax affairs, public liability insurance etc.
No sick pay, no holiday pay, no company pension, no company vehicle, laptop or phone.
Knowing that any mistakes will come out of your own pocket.Very little technical support ( that’s before UKWG’s of course)
Having said all that one thing that is rewarding if you do manage to survive on your own for any length of time is the satisfaction of knowing that you did it off your own bat. 8)
Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
Employed/Self employed!
Employed:
5 Weeks paid holiday
Pension
Van
Mobile
Laptop
Spares supplied
Work arranged
Paid Sickness benefit
Screw up, Not your problemSelf Employed:
None of the above
But would I swop? Not in a million years 😆Goose
Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
blooming great tax bill to pay every July and January.
Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
Employed: Less money no hastle. And once you’ve done your days toil you can relax and switch off!:D
Self-employed: More money with all the hastle. And 24/7/365 you rarely switch off. Your at someone’s beck & call all the while and you dare not go anywhere without a phone in your pocket. And when you get sick you’d better get well real quick or your just fresh meat for the wolves! 🙁
Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
Advantage.
Not being made redundant after your 6 month trial period due to the lack of work, although enough to keep agents busy after leaving a secure job. 👿
All that stock responsibility to ensure it doesn`t go missing before the bas888888s make you redundant. 😉
Disadvantage.
No van stock to look after that you haven`t paid for. 😉
Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
Have done both,was given promotion in my early thirties and looked after 15 engineers.Worst move I made,pressure from management,customers and some very average engineers,although the manufacture training did give me more strings to my bow.
After 3 years of collar and tie I left got the tool box out again and went self employed and vowed never to be either an empolyee or employer.31 years on it’s all whats been mentioned above.Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
Being self-employed is the best thing ever when your earning money!
For me all the things that some folks have said are disadvantages, like paper work, accounting, stock ordering, van etc, is a buzz. I love it, its all part of the job. Even when its hectic and stressfull, because its good stress. Being in control of everything especially the money. What other job would you get experience in being an engineer, driver salesman, mechanic, accountant, secretary, public relations officer, administrator, stock controler, manager etc.
Knowing that all the money i generate is all my own doing gives me a great sense of achievement.The earning potential is almost limitless and the harder you work the more you earn.
The disadvantages in my opinion are when your not busy you still have all the hectic and stressfull things to do and for little or no money! Thats bad stress!
Your almost never completely off duty. Doing paper work while watching telly or answering the phone while cooking the dinner.
You dont get paid holiday or sick pay but if your earning good money you can holiday when and for as long as you like and you dont have to phone anyone to explain that your piles are exeptionly painfull today!Subs
Not that ive ever had a problem with piles!
Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
Self Employment is BRILLIANT ( So long as you have the will and the drive to do it ).
Employed SUCKS ROTTEN EGGS.
as simple as that!
Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
I’ve now been self employed for 2 1/2 years. I’ve been ripped off by a manufacturers service partner once. Every now and again you swallow the cost of a part due to customers buying new machines and not cancelling with me. Theres a lot of paperwork and it can be very stressfull. I would rather have to do this though than go back and work for someone again. Even if you hit your targets, all they do is raise them. When a customer complains, you are always guilty….Now its me and just me…The only engineer i would employ is a self-employed engineer. Engineers on big companies are like postman…..Mostly under educated chancers who go on strike for a day and fit parts and do no diagnosis. Fit this or fit that until it works.
Self employed engineers work harder cos if they don’t fix it, they don’t get paid….. With manufacturers high call out charges, its the best time to be self employed. I know my phone is ringing and that means 2 or 3 times the earning power of a 25k a year engineer and i can see so much more out there. Its just the beginning :o)Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
nospin wrote: I know my phone is ringing and that means 2 or 3 times the earning power of a 25k a year engineer and i can see so much more out there.
Let me know where you’re based. I’ll be over to help you out. Just be a couple of weeks to pack up here. 😆
Mike.Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
I know you’re only joking there Mike and Lee with his sucking rotten eggs is a little extreme to say the least.
You must remember guys that both employed and self-employed read this thread and often never the twain doth meet (as it were). Nevertheless some may take objection toward their choice of career being somewhat belittled or indeed over exaggerated.
Much does benefit the employed engineer, the main being security and rightly so. And in these uncertain times security wins hands down overall. Self employed can indeed command a 2 or 3 times a £25K salary but my god you’d have to work your n*ts off to get close or even sustain that in the long term without the need for help and thus taking on (dare I say it?) an employee. 🙂
Each has merit enough right now. If you’re happy with your lot and can earn a living in this game then that’s good enough. Looking over the fence to see if it’s greener is not much of an option right now. In some cases the grass is growing like hell, but in many others it’s parched and dry and only good for paving over and forgetting! 😉
Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
I think once you’re established as self employed and have the customer base you’ve got more security than an employee. (At least as long as the government hold off their “regulating”).
Mike.Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
If this is the norm when employed then I think I’ll stay self-employed.
Our client based in the Gravesend area is looking for an experienced Domestic Service Engineer to cover the South East London and North Kent area. Servicing domestic appliances such as cookers, washing machines, fridges/freezers, dishwashers, microwaves and tumble dryers of various makes. There is a minimum of 9 jobs to fit in a day, up to a max of 13. At the end of each day the engineer has to go back to the Gravesend based office to collect the job schedule for the next day. The job is Monday to Friday 8.30am-5pm with one Saturday morning every five weeks.
The salary offered is £12,000pa with a bonus paid for each job completed (total earnings circa £22k-£24k).
😯
Re: Differences between self-employed and being an employee
leavemetogetonwithit wrote:I think once you’re established as self employed and have the customer base you’ve got more security than an employee
You do, but only for as long as you remain fit and healthy.
I also have to disagree with nospin’s take on employed company engineers, by and large they are not,
‘ like postman…..Mostly under educated chancers who go on strike for a day and fit parts and do no diagnosis. Fit this or fit that until it works’.The independent trade has just as many, possibly even more deadbeats or dodgy traders. A large number of the self employed members of UKWG’s were company engineers at one time, myself included. I didn’t suddenly morph into a paragon of virtue when I became self employed. I had my standards as a company engineer which I have endeavoured to maintain ever since so to label all company employed engineers in this way is totally out of order. IMHO of course. 😉
PS. I know a couple of postmen personally and they are both highly educated, hardworking and conscientious people.
My long time friend Alan Calow is one of them. 8)
Jim.
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