The plumbing company is the latest employer to be put in its place over the employment status of its workers, says Spencer Keen
- It is not enough to rely on an isolated provision in a contract that, on its own, might indicate that a person was self-employed rather than a worker.
- The increase in alternative methods of employment mean it is harder to rely on a drafting technique to define the real relationship between the parties.
- Understanding how the contract functions in the context of the client’s business is vital in today’s gig economy.
The law provides that there are three categories of employment status: the self-employed who are generally regarded as being in business on their own account and control their own activities; the employed who work under employment contracts and are subject to the direction of their employer; and workers who work under a contract to provide their services personally.
The distinction between these three types of worker is not always clear. What is clear however is that, in times of austerity, more and more employers are attempting to structure
