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Misconceptions About Contract Work

There are false perceptions that persist all around us. Not every salad is “healthy.” Millennials aren’t teenagers. (They’re all 27 or older, grandpa.) And in Monopoly, sadly, the racing car token doesn’t guarantee you victory. The same is true of contract work: Many people don’t understand the modern gig economy, and it may be costing them a crack at valuable work experience, career advancement and a more desirable lifestyle. Here are four misconceptions about contract work that could be holding you back from what may be a better brand of work:

Blue collar, white collar, all collars.

Driving Uber and Doordash is honest work, but the gig economy expands well beyond rideshare and delivery jobs. Independent contracting comes in all shapes, sizes, industries, salaries and levels of expertise and experience. From IT to accounting to engineering, these high-end, specialized gig positions often pay well and offer the sort of lifestyle flexibility that typically is difficult to find in a “permanent” staff role. Don’t make the mistake of assuming the contractor community isn’t for you based on misconceptions about the work itself. You could miss out on multiple opportunities of a lifetime.

Everyone is participating.

Misconceptions about contract work begin with a failure of imagination that has kept some workers from even considering it as an option. The perception that the gig economy is meant only for the semi-retired who are supplementing their income, or for workers who aren’t able to land traditional employment, couldn’t be further from the truth.

Contingent labor is part of the gig economy, and people of all ages, backgrounds and levels of education and expertise are opting in. And for good reason: Compensation for some gigs is equivalent to an annual salary well into the six figures, and the corporate world’s recent embrace of contract workers has opened up numerous new opportunities across industries.

Finding gigs is often easier than you think.

Although the gig economy literally has no barriers to entry, many staff workers assume the perks of independent contracting are either out of reach or require a grind that would be too grueling – or risky – to keep up. After all, finding new gigs can feel like a full-time job all its own, right?

It doesn’t have to be. A staff employee can always dip a toe in the gig economy without giving up their full-time role to gauge whether contracting is right for them – or just to build up a solid freelancing foundation. Once you’re ready to take the plunge, word of mouth often spreads and your work speaks for itself. Take it a step further, though, by signing on with a staffing agency – or a talent cloud like PeopleCaddie. Third-party intermediaries help you connect to eager employers looking for people just like you.

You don’t have to wait.

There’s no threshold of experience that freezes out a certain demographic of workers from the gig economy. A significant portion of independent contractors are younger pros who have gravitated to contingent labor as a lifestyle choice – and there is no shortage of employers willing to put them to work and pay them fairly.

A foundation of past work will always help a candidate in their search for the next job, but the reality is that companies hire people of all ages and experience levels for gig work. There’s no 10 Commandments of Contracting that requires a worker to “pay their dues” before trying their hand at contracting. The flexible schedule, reduced stress and handsome pay that often comes with professional gig work may be within your grasp right now.

Interested in learning more about contract work? Check out how PeopleCaddie’s talent cloud.

What Permanent Employees Can Learn from Contract Staff

Stable “permanent” employment has long been the ultimate goal for employees across industries. The promise of security, insurance benefits, a pension, vacation days and sick time had been an enticing draw for anyone seeking gainful employment and hoping to raise a family, build a nest egg or simply pursue individual happiness. For as long as anyone can remember, a traditional, full-time, permanent job was a worker’s golden ticket.

But times change. Today, a staff position is only as “permanent” as an employee’s next paycheck, and the traditional perks of full-time employment have gradually been compromised – or, in some cases, eliminated altogether. Meanwhile, more companies are hiring contingent labor for skilled (and often lucrative) work, creating opportunities for more professionals to earn higher wages and build more schedule flexibility into an individual lifestyle. Permanent employees are no longer viewed as having unlocked the key to professional success. In fact, they would do well to pick up a trick or three from their brethren on the other side.

Here’s what permanent employees can learn from independent contractors and other temporary employees:

Reflect and Own Your Experience

Because terms of their employment tend to be finite and relatively short, independent contractors typically update their resumes more often than their permanent counterparts do. But the reality is, every worker should regularly take time out to make sure all their employer-facing materials are current.

Not only are you more likely to capture the nuances of your work contributions and avoid forgetting important details by frequently updating your full dossier, you’ll never be caught scrambling to pull everything together at a moment’s notice. You never know when your dream job will suddenly become available – or when your current role may be zeroed out.

In addition to resumes, employees should routinely update all job employment and profile platforms (LinkedIn, for example), portfolios and similar summaries of work. Updating employers, titles and dates should be the bare minimum. Be sure to include new projects, duties and accomplishments that draw attention in a quick eyeball scan or keyword search – any one of them could be a foot in the door to a new opportunity, or simply demonstrate specialized or soft skills that give you a leg up over the competition.

Build Your Network While You Work

“It’s who you know” remains a key tenet of job seekers and career climbers. Mentors, former bosses, ex-colleagues and even past reports make excellent resources for contractors seeking their next gigs, and it should be no different for permanent employees.

Keeping in touch ensures that opportunities don’t slip through the cracks and throws grist into the social mill that makes networking something more than just an icky, wholly transactional affair. Check-in with your people from time to time. Let them know how you’re doing and when you’re looking. Be sure to ask how you might help them, too. If you help a former coworker land a gig, guess who’s going to flag you when a great job pops on their radar? At the very least, when an employer follows up on your references, you’ll want to be certain the people on the other end of the phone are primed to go to bat for you rather than struggling to recall your name.

Be Open to Possibilities and Opportunities to Grow

Even workers who don’t consider themselves go-getters or corporate climbers are stuck with a reality that needs facing: employment is a zero-sum game, and those who aren’t moving forward are falling behind.

And this doesn’t only hold true for temporary employees. It’s true that contractors need to constantly reinvent themselves and take aim at new skills and certifications to open the pool of opportunities as wide as possible. But as quickly as technology and business move today, even permanent employees run the risk of falling behind the curve or becoming obsolete in a position they may have been hired into not all that long ago.

Career development opportunities, formal or otherwise, should be consistently sought out and pursued. Avoid settling in your comfort zone or becoming too one-dimensional. The goal for every working professional today should be to grow your skill set and become more nimble, allowing you to perform more tasks and onboard faster – all of which will attract more employers and give you the tools to wow them once you’re hired.

Want more tips on how to optimism your professional profile? Check out the PeopleCaddie blog.

Reasons Contracting Beats Full-Time Work

Since the onset of the Great Resignation, many workers are approaching their careers, and employment in general, with a new outlook. Job candidates that may have only considered traditional full-time work in the past are now weighing the benefits of independent contracting. And there are many reasons contracting beats full-time work.

The flexibility and variety of contract work offers freelancers the ability to live life on their own terms – live where they want to live, work when they want to work, care for loved ones, travel, you name it. Although full-time employment works for some, anyone in the job market should be aware that there are other viable paths – some of them that may suit you best. With that, here are five ways contracting beats full-time work:

Schedule

The primary reason contracting beats full-time work is the flexibility it provides. Many contract positions are work-from-home setups, allowing contractors to skip the commute, take care of children or family, or just work in a comfortable environment. The ability to pick and choose contracts allows freelancers to build new skills and keep their work-life fresh while helping them carve out more personal time between projects if they like.

Compensation

Contractors typically make more money per hour than their full-time counterparts, but there are a number of reasons it pays to freelance. For instance, 1099 employees are able to deduct business expenses, which results in lower tax liability and more cash in their pockets. And because projects usually require specialized skills (and thus pay more), contractors can work fewer hours for the same amount of money – particularly in specific sectors, such as accounting and information technology.

There’s more: A full-time, salaried employee might work 60 hours per week and not be paid for that extra time. But a contractor gets to bill for every hour, so any overtime is compensated. And what about inflation? Full-time employees are stuck at a pay rate that won’t be adjusted for an increased cost of living (which, incidentally, we’re experiencing now). Meanwhile, a contractor can adjust their hourly rates as needed to earn the market rate and adjust for inflation.

Meaningful Work

Contractors have the ability to pivot to different projects and clients much more easily than traditional full-time employees. Whether you have a sense of duty or wanderlust, freelancing means never having to stay in one place too long.

Let’s say an IT professional wants to learn a new skill or broaden their experience in a specific area, and their best option is working for a company with a large carbon footprint. If protecting the climate is important to them, perhaps they contract for a short time – long enough to sharpen that skill – and then move on to a carbon-neutral employer when the time is right. Independent contractors have the agility to switch projects as they see fit, for any reason.

Advancement Opportunities

Contractors don’t necessarily have to jump from client to client to build their careers. While working for a single client, a contractor can take on increasingly higher-level assignments and potentially work their way up to the management level within a company. And for a contractor who finds the perfect fit, sometimes projects can even lead to a full-time offer with an employer who finds value in that employee’s work.

Remote Work

Working remotely doesn’t necessarily mean working from home. Want to hit the beach? Bring your laptop! Remote work allows a contractor to move anywhere in the country (or even out of the country) and still work in a specific field. And for the remote worker who lives in a low-cost area but whose employer pays in accordance with the higher cost of living where headquarters is located, contract work can even translate to yet another financial benefit.

There are advantages to both full-time and contract work, of course. But if you value flexibility and the ability to modulate your life-work balance, contracting might be the better choice for you.

Looking to shift to contract work? Set up your profile on PeopleCaddie and start searching for contract jobs today.

Should You Quit With a Recession Looming?

We’re in a booming job market, with an unexpectedly high number of jobs (372,000) having been added in June. Yet most economists agree that circumstances are ripe for a potential recession. Some workers who don’t remember the economic times of 2008 might be wondering what job hunting will be like, and whether or not it’s wise to make quit during a recession.

Even in light of the “Great Resignation,” the current bullish job economy is not sustainable. If the tide begins to turn, how might the fallout affect workers who are considering making a career move?

What Happens to Jobs in a Recession

In the economic recovery phase following the initial waves of Covid, jobs have been readily available for those seeking work. The unemployment rate has dropped as low as 3.6 percent, while compensation has increased and employers have bent over backwards to attract and maintain talent. It may not feel quite like boom times (thanks, inflation), but workers are indeed enjoying a moment.

A recession, on the other hand, tends to prompt instinctive belt-tightening around many industries. In 2008, for instance, companies and workers faced hiring freezes and layoffs. The unemployment rate ballooned, ranging from 5-10 percent. It’s not unreasonable to presume that a recession in 2022 or 2023 could lead to similar outcomes.

Preparing for a Recession

Although economists’ predictions of a recession looming range from 30-50 percent, workers would do well to prepare as if a recession is likely. This leads to the question at hand: Should an employee quit their job with a recession looming? The answer isn’t a simple one, but here are a few takeaways that can help:

There’s an old adage that has some value here: It’s easier to get a job when you have a job. Employers are looking for established employees who are willing and able to go with the flow as industries and the economy change. Equally beneficial: during periods of high inflation, which can precede a recession, there’s opportunity to generate competition for your services amongst employees. That results in higher pay.
More than ever, focus on producing quality work. If layoffs do become necessary, companies will prioritize holding on to the more proactive and productive members of their staff.
Evaluate job opportunities with longevity in mind. Until now, workers knew that if a particular opportunity didn’t pan out, several more would likely be there for the picking. In a recession, that’s less likely to be the case. A position with better security or long-term prospects may be more valuable during a recession than another job that is more fulfilling or that pays slightly more.
Situations may present themselves where quitting a job is a necessity during poor market conditions. If a company offers attractive severance packages in exchange for voluntary resignation, it becomes easier to capitalize with emergency savings in hand. Even better, one could turn to contract work and a talent cloud like PeopleCaddie. That allows these people to collect severance in addition to a contractor’s salary. With PeopleCaddie, when contractors work at least 30 hours a week, they gain access to our benefits package which includes health insurance.
While a recession may slow full-time hiring, it may open up opportunities on the contingent labor side. Examine how you can leverage the benefits of contract work to secure opportunities with companies engaged in full-time hiring freezes.

Should You Quit During a Recession?

A move or career change might seem like a good idea now, but as the possibility of a recession draws nearer, job hopping could be a risky choice for those who depend on a steady, reliable income. Job numbers are expected to decrease in the coming months, and the reward for those who sit tight in the interim might be remaining gainfully employed when companies start cinching those belts.

Of course, what comes at a premium during any recession is stability. Full-time work is binary. A layoff reduces income to zero. Contract work can provide more security during times of economic upheaval because a “40-hour work week” could be allocated in pieces to different companies.

Lose one of those jobs and you haven’t lost your entire income. Essentially, contract workers hedge their income by diversifying risk across a number of different companies.

Interested in learning how you can do so? Join our talent cloud to see the opportunities available to you.

Pitfalls of Contract Work and How to Avoid Them

Freelancing is often sold as a dream job. “Be your own boss!” “Set your own hours!” Although those elements are certainly part of the package, the reality is that there is a downside to independent contracting. Some of these hazards are avoidable, some are less so. But being prepared offers a freelancer the chance to live their best life. Here’s how to identify and, when possible, avoid the pitfalls of contract work.

When Demand Dries Up

In most situations, an agreement between contractors and employers will outline the expected duration for any given assignment. Occasionally, this information isn’t available, and often circumstances can change. Example: For event-related freelancers such as graphic artists, event coordinators and performers, 2020 proved to be a black hole due to the pandemic. Most of these contractors expected to earn a certain level of income throughout the year, but when on-site events disappeared, so did their work. Circumstances changed.

In a less dramatic example, an accounting contractor who expects 40 hours a week from a client may suddenly learn they’re needed for only 10. How do they adjust to this new reality? While these scenarios are sometimes unavoidable, it helps to secure work well in advance and include scenarios such as these in contracts so they are accounted for when planning bills and finances.

When the Cup Runneth Over

When trying to plan finances around freelance work, some contractors have a tendency to overcommit. Avoid putting yourself in the position of stretching your bandwidth to the breaking point – particularly if it means doing so to keep up with a lifestyle beyond essential expenses.

No judgment – we all like nice things! – but a freelancer risks a lot more than a few luxury items if they come up short on a project. Failing to deliver, or late delivery, can be a reputation-killer. It could cost you future work with that client and may even end up in non-payment, depending on the severity of the situation. Take care to commit to only the amount of work that can be reliably delivered on time and at a high level of quality.

When the Taxman Comes Around

When receiving money as a 1099 contractor or freelancer, it’s important to set aside money for the IRS and to educate yourself on tax laws and procedures. This will help avoid being stuck with a huge tax bill (plus penalties) come April 15. Paying expected taxes quarterly and putting away 25-30 percent of earned income will help prevent an unwelcome surprise at tax time. It’s also advisable to consistently track business expenses and keep documentation. Hiring a CPA can help.

When Payment Is a Problem

Freelancing comes with some risk, depending on the clients a contractor does business with. Sometimes payment arrives late and the worker must make a choice: continue working and wait for payment or cease working. Although it’s tempting to keep working to avoid losing the contract, the client has breached the freelancer agreement. Hauling the client into court shouldn’t be your first instinct, but it’s important to hold them accountable and steer clear of clients who are late or absent on payday. Chances are, it won’t be the last time.

Freelancing can be a dream job, but it’s important to watch out and prepare for the potential pitfalls of contract work. PeopleCaddie can help by making it simple to find work, structure agreements, get paid consistently and on time, and take care of taxes and insurance, allowing independent contractors to sidestep some of their toughest challenges right out of the gate.

PeopleCaddie can help you navigate the pitfalls of contract work. Contact us to find out how.

The Unique Value of the PeopleCaddie Ratings System

One of the more difficult aspects of job seeking for independent contractors has been conveying the value of skill, experience and past results to hiring professionals. Creating and updating resumes and portfolios takes time and effort, which can add up for workers on shorter contracts. Companies don’t always invest in or track the performance of contractors as they would their full-timers, leaving them at a disadvantage when attempting to attract future employment. For a contractor, putting your best foot forward often feels like an elaborate game of Twister.

And it’s no picnic on the other side. Recruiters increasingly rely on algorithms to sort through the first wave of job applicants. Even the old stand-by – references – are no longer a reliable resource. The transparency of information from candidate-provided sources has always been suspect at best, of course, but companies have also become skittish over time about potential legal liability, most commonly defamation.

PeopleCaddie has an answer to the problem: a unique ratings system that helps recruiters who access our talent cloud to better understand what a candidate may provide their company after hiring. Rather than relying on the vague qualitative analysis and uncertain motivations of traditional references, PeopleCaddie’s rating system quantifies the hiring and job-seeking process, transforming crowdsourced data into insights that help both employers and employees. Here’s how they work:

Quantitative vs. Qualitative: Making Hiring More Reliable

The varied priorities and personalities among managers and supervisors might lead one to draw dramatically different conclusions about the strengths and weaknesses of an employee than another. Rather than basing the hiring process on subjective criteria and opinions – qualitative analysis – PeopleCaddie is reinventing traditional hiring using standardized quantitative measures. And because every PeopleCaddie contractor is required to accept our terms of use, all reviewers are indemnified against any liability related to their feedback, allowing them to provide ratings without fear of legal ramifications.

The PeopleCaddie ratings system covers three key areas:

Quality of work
Timelines of work
Contractor professionalism

Contractors are rated by former employers on a scale of 1-5 stars within each of these categories, and PeopleCaddie combines those scores to assign the contractor a composite star rating. This helps employers searching for contractors to quickly identify top candidates and compare them against one another.

Trustworthy References: No More Unverified Sources

Under the traditional hiring system, checking references was a difficult, time-consuming process that often couldn’t be verified. A hiring manager might know that a candidate worked at Company X, but they couldn’t be certain who that candidate worked for or reported to directly. A candidate had the ability to cherry-pick their best references – perhaps even peers or friendly colleagues willing to speak in glowing terms.

On the PeopleCaddie platform, however, a candidate’s rating must come from a person who was responsible for approving their timesheets or directly supervised the contractor at a previous employer. Our database even indicates how many ratings a contractor has received from employers within our network, as well as who within each company provided that contractor’s rating. And if a candidate hasn’t previously worked for a company in the PeopleCaddie network, we take the necessary steps to verify the person identified as the candidate’s supervisor, leveraging resources such as our proprietary user network, LinkedIn, Zoominfo and others in order to ensure that our clients have the benefit of full transparency.

Hiring is an inexact science. The stakes are high and the success rate historically has tended to be lower than most employers care to think about. But with a quantitative candidate evaluation system and reference verification, PeopleCaddie clients have the resources to remove the guesswork from hiring to bring on contractors confidently.

Interested in learning more about the PeopleCaddie ratings system? Contact us!

The Great Resistance Analyzed

Two years after the pandemic forced much of the American labor force out of the office and into work-from-home mode, many workers have learned something: they liked the change. No commute. More time with loved ones. Flexibility to run errands or handle appointments. The benefits of remote work are undeniable, perks that many workers had never before experienced – and are now reluctant to give back. It’s being described as The Great Resistance: workers who, after being sent home during the pandemic, are reacting to the current push from employers to return to the office by pushing back themselves.

What does it mean for business? How about labor? And, particularly, independent contractors? Let’s investigate.

Employees Hold the Upper Hand During the Great Resistance

It’s no secret that today’s workers are enjoying virtually unprecedented leverage in the employer-employee relationship. Many companies, after retrenching or completely shutting down due to Covid, have struggled to ramp up production again and are experiencing The Great Resistance. An eagerness to re-staff, combined with retirements and pre-retirement age employees choosing to leave the workforce entirely during the pandemic – also known as The Great Resignation – have created a record-high number of job openings. Meanwhile, organizations have been scrambling to offer higher salaries, improve benefits and generally bend to the will of labor in order to attract the best talent and dissuade current employees from looking elsewhere.

But many business leaders seem to be drawing a line in the sand when it comes to work from home. In May, a leaked email from Elon Musk mandating a minimum 40-hour in-office week for Tesla employees contained the stern subject line “Remote work is no longer acceptable.” (Asked to consider the stance of Tesla employees who were critical of the policy, Musk tweeted that “They should pretend to work somewhere else.”) JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has made similarly dismissive public comments, saying in one interview that “people don’t like commuting, but so what?”

No matter how impatient employers may be with the labor market’s shift toward normalizing remote work – and the logistics issues it can raise – antagonizing employees (especially in this moment) is a dicey approach. Also: It won’t do any good. According to a recent Pew Research Center survey, 76 percent of people with access to an office who are instead working from home say they’re doing so because they prefer it – up from 60 percent in 2020. The genie is out of the bottle. Remote and hybrid work, like them or not, are here to stay.

Opposition to an Office Return: an Opportunity for Businesses

There are some valid reasons for employers to urge workers back into the office. Some businesses require on-site labor in order to operate, the vast majority of whom have already returned. Others simply run more efficiently when staff is able to make smoother project handoffs and collaborate in a shared workspace. A recent study even found that remote work yields fewer creative ideas than the typical in-office model.

But rather than staunchly opposing work from home, companies should consider finding ways to embrace it. In many cases, it’s possible to find a reasonable compromise even when a full remote option for every employee isn’t feasible. At the very least, offering WFH Fridays or a set number of monthly remote-work days per employee signals to workers that a company hears them and acknowledges the new paradigm. Turning a “So what?” into a “So where?” can be the difference-maker that helps a company attract and retain the best employees.

Need help navigating the current labor market. PeopleCaddie can help. Check out how by clicking here.

Rethinking Workplace Benefits

In today’s job market, companies are facing stiff competition for skilled, reliable and qualified employees. In the current labor climate, one of the major deciding factors for workers evaluating open positions or job offers are the workplace benefits that come with a role.

Just as the job market is changing, workers have begun prioritizing benefits differently. Here are a few important considerations for employers trying to stay a step ahead of these changes:

Traditional Employee Benefits

For many years, the typical series of benefits companies offered to attract employees was fairly standard: health insurance, vacation/PTO, sick leave, and pension/401k with possible contribution matching.

In many cases, however, employees either didn’t have the need or felt unable to access at least some of these offerings. For instance, a married worker who was already covered under their spouse’s health insurance wouldn’t benefit from a second health plan. Additionally, many employees have avoided taking advantage of paid time off, concerned that their absence might place a burden on their coworkers, company or customers.

How Covid Changed Worker Priorities

The upheaval of the pandemic turned the labor market on its head – and with it, worker expectations. After employees began working from home, weaving child care into their work days and building more flexibility into their lives, many workers began reevaluating the traditional work-life balance.

Working from home also allowed employees to eliminate their commutes, resulting in more personal time and, in many cases, healthier habits. Remote work allowed for more sleep, home-cooked meals, workouts between meetings and spending more time with loved ones. These lifestyle changes, for many workers, have become non-negotiable even as companies begin angling toward a return to the office.

Adjusting to New Benefits Expectations

Given the shift in the labor market, with employees now holding as much leverage as they have had in decades, most companies are (wisely) rethinking their benefits packages and asking questions they possibly haven’t considered in years: What do employees really want? What are competitors offering in terms of benefits?

Because work-from-home is a benefit that has climbed the list of typical worker priorities, employers willing to offer the option will want to determine its boundaries. For example, if an employee is allowed to work outside the office, is the benefit restricted to their home or can they work anywhere – a coffee shop, the beach, out of the country? How might a worker who takes a break to run a quick errand be handled from a payroll standpoint? Are these moments considered PTO or should they be treated the same as a conversation at the water cooler or a restroom break in the office?

And what about hybrid work? How does an employer determine which days a worker is required to be in the office? Should the decision be left up to the employee? If so, how will workers sync up on projects if their days in office don’t align? A hybrid model may still work when collaboration between colleagues is necessary, but employers should give plenty of advance consideration to whether and how it fits into their business.

Ultimately, today’s workforce is looking for flexibility – flexibility in work location, hours and sometimes even tasks. Until the labor market shifts yet again and jobs become more scarce, employers should continue evaluating and adjusting traditional benefits, and find ways to offer workers the flexibility they seek in order to compete for the top talent in the job market.

Need more insights on how to manage your labor force? Check out the PeopleCaddie blog.

Part-Time Employees Vs. Contractors: An Examination

A question for employers: Are all employees created equal? Or, more aptly, should they all be treated the same? No one doubts that full-time employees, part-time employees, contractors and seasonal employees all deserve certain basic rights, considerations and courtesies, of course. But does it actually make sense for employers to approach each of these different types of roles in a similar fashion? If the objective is a well-connected, well-oiled workforce, then the answer is yes.

Consider one example: When a company hires part-time employees, they may work 20 hours every week for a full year. In the case of a contractor, they could work full time for six months and then not work for the next six months. At the end of the year, both employees have worked the same number of hours, and theoretically they have contributed the same amount of work to the company.

Why, then, are part-time employees often considered “internal,” while the contractor is considered part of the company’s external talent pool?

It’s a fundamental question framed by urgent immediate context: In the midst of the current labor shortage, more companies are looking to freelancers and contractors to supplement their workforce. But these organizations may not currently be equipped or have processes in place to properly manage this mix of traditional employees and independent contractors. Where should they begin to align?

Communication is key. In the workplace, this goes for communication about projects and work tasks, as well as human resources and employee information. Contractors often serve roles that are similar or identical to those of other employees, so failing to deliver them the same (potentially business-critical) information could actually be detrimental to the company. And in this labor market, with more businesses adopting hybrid work schedules, it’s even more important that all staff is working from the same playbook in order to complete deliverables.

Managers and employers should view all of the various worker classifications (traditional W2, part-time W2, contractors, freelancers and consultants) as essential components of a single combined workforce. This will result in improved efficiency, higher productivity, clearer communication and, not to be overlooked, a more unified workplace staffed with more satisfied employees.

Those are all worthy goals, and there are tools available to employers to help achieve them. PeopleCaddie makes it easy to get in touch with former contractors, hire and onboard whenever needed. Let’s say a software contractor has just finished a project, but it’s necessary to bring them back for modifications, enhancements or product support. A freelancer is more likely to return to an organization when they were treated well during their first stint supporting the company. When an employer treats their contingent workforce the same as the company’s other employees, they’re more likely to develop solid relationships and ensure that they cultivate a pool of reliable resources.

And what organization wouldn’t want to bring in an employee who is already familiar with their co-workers and company processes, and who has already been integrated into the company culture? That employee will undoubtedly have an easier time being brought up to speed, and they figure to make for a better immediate fit than a candidate who is completely new to the organization.

Think of contractors the same as you do full-time staff and offer them the same communication. By integrating the two talent pools and demonstrating that they receive equal consideration from management, you’re more likely to build a productive, united workforce.

Considering adding contractors to your workforce? See how PeopleCaddie can help.

Minimize Stress in the Workplace

Stress is making workers sick. From high blood pressure to heart disease to mental health issues, employees are increasingly at risk due to stressors in the workplace. Jeffrey Pfeffer, a professor of organizational behavior at Stanford School of Business, recently told the Boston Globe that more than 100,000 people in the U.S. die each year due to adverse work conditions. That figure, which doesn’t account for workplace injuries, reflects only those deaths tied to “workplace management.” As American workers push themselves harder than ever to get ahead (or just maintain their place) at work, businesses are striving to do more with less – and employees are feeling the strain. Despite this grim development, employers can find ways to minimize stress in the workplace.

Stress manifests itself in different ways in the work setting: employee absences, increased doctor visits and extreme moods or outbursts, for instance – and it’s important for employers to watch for these signs and adjust accordingly. Supervisors and business leaders control many of the factors at work that ensure a colleague’s workload is manageable and their environment is comfortable and conducive to productivity.

Let’s say a typically productive employee begins slipping – calling in sick or showing physical signs of stress, such as exhaustion – it’s a good time to check in with the employee. Tactfully, ask how they’re doing. A conversation alone can help minimize stress. Are they overloaded? Do they feel they’ve been forced to take on too much responsibility? Is there anything that can be done to help ease their burden at work or, if possible, make things easier outside the office? The nature of the employee’s difficulties may not fall within the scope of the workplace, but even just a bit of empathy can show a worker that they’re valued. Regular check-ins open a dialogue that could help a colleague manage and possibly solve their problems.

Today’s workers are under extreme pressure to produce. With post-Covid staffing shortages and increased costs of doing business, working – whether in or out of the office – can be an intense and difficult experience. Quotas and sales figures hang over the heads of many employees. And in our increasingly data-driven society, key performance indicators (KPIs) add new levels of stress for others. Under pressure to hit their numbers, employees may work extra hours, possibly foregoing sleep, exercise and down time with family.

In light of all this, employers should prioritize providing resources to help employees minimize stress. Offering a medical plan that includes mental health services can help workers seek help when needed. Offering a “quiet room” or a day off to a stressed out employee can make all the difference. In one study, doctors took blood pressure readings of employees under extreme stress and noted their elevated numbers. After a 5-10 minute break in a quiet environment, when the immediate stress had subsided, those individuals’ blood pressure readings had decreased.

Again, check in with your employees on their workload, stress levels and, if appropriate, home life. Establish a process for evaluating workers and helping to lower their stress and anxiety. These processes might include reviewing the employee’s workload, meeting with the employee to determine the sources of workplace stress or connecting the employee to healthcare resources. Reducing stress in the workplace has a cascading effect on productivity, but hopefully we’re all looking out for the well-being of our colleagues simply for its own sake. It’s up to employers to set that example.

Looking for more tips on managing your workforce? Check out the PeopleCaddie blog.