IT professionals salary question

[bencronin04]

Originally Posted by Robert200

What do you mean when you say "going contractor"?

I mean I know what a contractor is, somebody who is in business for themselves either as an LLC or sub S etc... and at the end of the year gets a 1099 from from the company they worked at.

But are they employees of a "consulting firm"?.... So to the end customer the worker is a "contractor" for a specified period. But the worker may be an employee to the consulting firm.

If the worker was a "contractor" than they would be responsible for getting and finding their own work. How does a younger less experienced worker get the "work?

I'm not arguing I'm just trying to understand because I'm at the point in my life, not married and no kids where I wouldn't be against traveling to god forsaken places if the price was right... along with a reasonable amount of safety.

I guess my question is: How does a younger less experienced worker meet your definition of a "contractor"? What specific steps would they need to take to be a contractor?

Thanks.

You can get this through a recruiter. You can also get on dice, monster, etc and specify "contract work". Companies pay more per hour for contract work as they do not have to provide benefits, training, etc.

A consultant with a consulting firm is a little different(this is what I actually do). It's the best of both worlds for me as I don't have to travel hardly ever(most of our clients are based locally) and our clients pay a significant amount more for us as were "experts" with unique skill sets. I also receive full benefits from my consulting firm as they are the ones that actually pay me vs. our clients. This kind of position is going to take more than a year of experience to land generally.

[Robert200]

That's really interesting that you can get it through a recruiter. I never heard that before. I used to be a "consultant" myself a long time ago. I worked for a "consulting" firm that farmed us out to various customers. I don't remember how I was paid on that job whether it was on a W2 or a 1099.

[lpepping]

Originally Posted by Robert200

That's really interesting that you can get it through a recruiter. I never heard that before. I used to be a "consultant" myself a long time ago. I worked for a "consulting" firm that farmed us out to various customers. I don't remember how I was paid on that job whether it was on a W2 or a 1099.

Most of my contracting jobs were through a recruiter. Most were on W2 for me with the occasional 1099. But I haven't contracted in about 5 years so not sure what the current trends are.

[TX75007]

Originally Posted by Robert200

What do you mean when you say "going contractor"?
.

You contact a recruiter. They are looking to fill short-term positions - 3 mo/6mo/1 year. They bill out you at one rate and pay you another. You can be 1099 or W2 depending. You go onsite and work at one client. If you do well, the recruiter gets good feedback and then works hard to place you at a new site when the gig is up - or you get renewed.

One you have job hopped a couple of times, you start to see what you like as well as whether your prospective new employer has their act together.

From the client side- they have budgeted a certain amount of money for their projects. They hire a mix of FT and contractors to get the job done. Could be new install or old maintenance. When the money runs out, they let you go OR you can convert to FT or YOU decide to move on.