The Altering Face Of The UK Jobs Market: Why Many Are Choosing Self-Employment, And Why You Might Join Them

According to statistics recently published by the Federation of Small Businesses, unprecedented numbers of individuals are currently branching out and choosing self-employment. Nearly a third of a million are predicted to choose self-employment in 2010. Obviously, this is in part a result of the current deep recession, with many being made redundant and many others on temporary contracts, and job opportunities often being pursued by a hundred or more applicants. However, on a more positive side, it is an excellent time to be self-employed, as Internet business can be utilized as a cheap sales and marketing channel for whatever you produce or offer. It can also allow you to work from home removing the cost of establishing an office or shop.

There exist various ideas for working for yourself, using your old skills or possibly teaching yourself additional skills for instance in the various online jobs which are now available in Internet business. Not all business proposals require a huge sum of money. I heard of a case in which a guy had the idea of retrieving abandoned shopping trolleys from various places and selling them back to their original stores. Initial capital needed, virtually zero. And for those who work from home, overheads like transport costs might actually be lower than when they commuted to work.

You should attach a ‘caveat emptor’ to a number of allegedly self-employed jobs which could in fact be a scam. You will see some jobs in the online jobs listings which I suspect to be just unscrupulous employers seeking methods of avoiding the costs of employing a person. For instance, a debt collectors agency advertised for self-employed debt collectors. You would only be paid if you managed to get debtors to pay the money they owed, and interestingly, there was no reference to the percentage they would pay you, indicating to me that it was a quite ungenerous figure. I was not sufficiently curious to make further enquiries.

Neither do you necessarily count as self-employed simply because you work from home. My previous company in London had employees who worked at home in Scotland and Northern Ireland. These people only visited the office for company meetings, but they still had a status as employees and were on the company payroll. To count as self-employed, you need to have the right to choose your working hours and organise your own workload. For instance, in an Internet business opportunity like web consultancy you will get paid on what you achieve, not at an hourly rate.

Not everyone may be a suitable candidate for self-employment. There are some who prefer to be inspired and supervised by others in a predictable structured situation, while dreaming of the big lottery win. If you work from home or as a sole trader then you are not under anyone else’s command, and you must be a self-starter. There is no quick formula for huge wealth. Yet lots of employed workers feel frustrated that they have few prospects of getting to the top at work. The top earners all seem to be the CEO’s friends or family. You will never be one of them. Work as your own boss in online jobs or another line of business, and you could potentially create a successful business and reach your personal goals.

Sole traders need to deal with their own book-keeping and tax matters, and it is advisable to find a reliable financial consultant. Some items can be claimed as expenses and reduce your tax bill. Furthermore it is vital to take out insurance against ill health, because there is no employer to give you sick pay.

Looking at the whole picture, though, the recompenses of being your own boss far outweigh the drawbacks. The majority of people who have turned to self-employment say they don’t ever want to return to being an employee. It is worth your time to consider seriously.