Ozbound7

Does anyone have or can recommend a pro-forma or model contract suitable for IT contracting as self-employed in Melbourne?

Cheers

Billabong

I'd be interested in looking at an example as well if anyone is willing to share

jumbo

Is it straightforward to get this sort of work as there seem to be no IT contractors in the audience.

dracupg

Direct contracts i.e. contracts directly between the client and the contractor are pretty rare beasts. The majority of contractors will be placed via agencies with the contract being between the contractor and the agency.

As in the UK, companies here perform due diligence checks on all organisations that contracts are entered into between. It is extremely difficult for an individual contractor to meet these requirements.

Companies will perform these checks on agencies, and agencies that are suitable will be put onto a preferred supplier list.

Having said that, it isn’t unknown for contractors to have direct contracts, just not the norm. Perhaps organisations in the IT sector are more open to this sort of arrangement, but in my experience in the financial sector here, it is very rare.

Also, I suspect that if someone had gone to the time and effort to draw up a direct contract, they would be loathed to place it in the public domain, even with the confidential details removed.

gedge

I've asked around the 4 contractors where I'm at, and none of them have contracted direct to a company, always through an agency.
Someone suggested contacting some of the agencies and ask for help with this (for a fee of course) but I wouldn't expect this to lead anywhere except laughter or gob smacked silence!

Another suggestion was that the ACS should be able to advise if you are a member - unfortunately none of us are.

Would you not consider the agency approach?

Kiwipaul

I've been contracting in IT down here in NZ and Oz for 10 years now and had about 20 different contracts but they have all been through agencies.
In fact I've only met one person who contracted directly with the employer and she knew the MD and got the contract through him and it was only a small office of a multinational.

Even people who contract via their own company still have to use agencies to find them the work.

My last job had at least 10 IT contractors all employed through different agencies, so good luck trying to find one.

jerzy

Is there a sizeable IT contract market in Oz then, are the rates comparable with the difference in contract/permie rates in the UK ?

I've been contracting in the UK for over 10 years but have always thought that I would need to go permie upon arriving in OZ (we're heading to Sydney).

Kiwipaul

Can only speak for Brisbane but the IT contract market has picked up in last few months. As for jobs their is as many contract positions available as full time IMHO. My last IT job with the gov the no of contractors was about 50% of the staff.
With labour laws down here once you've got a full time job it's bloody difficult to get sacked and you get loads of perks. Contractors can be sacked very eaisly by not renewing their contract so firms tend to take on contractors as less hassle.

gedge

I've always worked as a permie in the UK, but both times in Sydney I've contracted. As Kiwipaul explained, companies here like their contractors. Most of the permies where I'm at once contracted for the company before.

For me the rates of pay have been comparable, it's the tax you've got to look out for!

What area of IT are you in? This might help with the answers.

dracupg

IT contracting is alive and well in Australia. They already have in place similar legislation to IR35, so some of the perks aren’t as good as they once were.

Employers tend to offer shortish initial contracts with the prospect of extensions if you are any good. A lot of employers will recruit a contractor with a view to offering them a permanent role. This is because the employment law here is pretty tough, and it is difficult to get rid of employees even if they turn out to be useless.

It is easy to let staff go at the end of a contract though, rather than offering them a permanent role. This is much like initial probation used to be, but employees and companies soon realised that even if an employee was on probation, they were still governed by the same employment law making it difficult in practise to let someone go.

Contract market definitely picking up though, with contractors asking for raises rather than keeping their heads down.

tweed

There is nothing magic about an IT self-employment contract. Just download a sample normal employment contract from Lawcentral and adapt it to suit your requirements.

Cheers

jerzy

I'm in software development, usually systems analysis/design but can turn my hand to programming in either IBM Mainframe or M/S VB environments. Worked mainly for financial institutions but also utilities and insurance.

Good to hear that employers view contractors favourably, I had worried about getting back into permie positions as so many employers here in the UK eye contractors going permanent very suspiciously.

Thanks.