Re: Why people dislike consultants

morlej_at_my-deja.com wrote:
>
> I think that there is some ambiguity in terminology going on here. When
> I refer to a consultant, I specifically mean somebody who is contracted
> for maybe only one day (or less), probably working for a firm of
> consultants (such as Oracle Consulting). This same kind of person can
> also be contracted for longer periods, and then the distinction becomes
> fuzzier between a consultant and an independent contractor.
> In this posting, I am specifically referring to short-term consultants,
> on missions of about 1-2 weeks or less.
>
> Does that change anything, or do all the comments stand?
> Cheers
>

No. That really doesn't clear things up.

In the computer world there are at least three different types of contracts.

There are W-2 contractors who receive their pay check from a consulting company. The consulting company takes care of income tax, social security and other deductions of that type. On a legal basis, the individual has an at-will relationship with the consulting company and if the contact that they were fulfilling is terminated or ends, the consulting company has no obligation to find new work for the individual. The individual must pay for their own benefits and basically the consulting company merely provides payroll services. In some cases benefits are available at group rates with guaranteed acceptance into the plans

There are also full-time staff employees of consulting companies which are used to fill needs for assignments to companies that contract to the consulting company for specific numbers of people for a specific length of time. If the contract ends for any reason, the individul remains an employee with the consulting company and continues to draw a salary. The consulting company then assigns the individual to another position or lets him sit "on the bench" until something new comes along. For all intents and purposes the individual is an actual employee of the consulting company and receives benefits just like all other employees of that company.

Then there are 1099 contractors. These are truely independent contractors. They market themselves and negotiate rates, etc. directly with the company for whom they will be providing services. These individuals must do all of their own tax work (although many hire CPAs to do this for them) and must provide their own benefits and that often means that they can be rejected for medical insurance based on pre-existing conditions.

I'm sure there are more categories than this, but these are the only types that I've really run into. Received on Wed Nov 17 1999 - 07:59:24 CST