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Issue 7 | July 2016

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A trend within False freelance fightback make it very expensive. This is
is
disturbing
proliferating
where belonging to a trade union
private-sector EFL – at
least in London. EFL teachers suddenly becomes important
– the Gazette advises teach-
working in the capital’s less- Matt Salusbury asks if UK EFL teachers can have ‘freelance contracts’ ers to consider joining one, not
prestigious language schools as a militant gesture but as an
with whom the Gazette is in con- insurance against the costs of
tact tell us ‘freelance contracts’ you are eligible for statutory sick an employment tribunal. In the
are all they’re offered these days. pay, unemployment pay if you Gazette’s experience, the ATL
In many other countries, it’s lose your job, pension, holiday union, as well as being the least
perfectly legal to be a freelance pay and redundancy money. So militant, best understands small
teacher. In many European what can you do? private-sector employers. There
countries, for example, it is a HMRC will go after your are other unions, including the
high-status position offering employer for the unpaid tax GMB and the UCU, which take
genuine tax advantages. In the and NI. In practice, they are on Teflers – check them out
UK the term ‘freelance’ has no less likely to bother shaking yourself.
legal meaning and it was com- down individual teachers. How- Remember, it’s already too
pletely illegal to hire teachers ever, be aware that reporting late to join a union when your
on a self-employed basis until your school to the HMRC for school’s about to go under. Con-
2010. Even now, it is rare for offering illegal contracts could sider joining a union now –they
Her Majesty’s Revenue and possibly tip an already troubled will only provide free legal
Customs (HMRC), the govern- school into bankruptcy, so it’s services to members who’ve
ment’s tax authority, to allow it Copyright Matt Salusbury your judgement call. Getting already been with them for sev-
– if they find out. your employee status recog- eral months.
One teacher told us they knew nised means you’ll be eligible If you actually want the flex-
such contracts were ‘dodgy’, but for the government Redundancy ibility of being a self-employed
felt the prevailing labour market TAXING TIMES The tax authority takes a keen interest in whether or not a worker is an employee Insurance scheme which (theo- teacher, teaching for two or three
gave them no choice but to accept retically) ensures employees of different clients will help your
very disadvantageous freelance contract does not mean you are mining the status of workers pations that, over the years, folded companies at least get case, as well as registering as
status. Sample contracts seen by not an employee. The way to lists a complex set of factors. Is HMRC or the courts have their last month’s wages paid. self-employed and getting your
the Gazette describe the teacher check your position is to use the employer obliged to provide ruled you can carry out as self- It’s not just HMRC schools unique tax reference number.
as ‘freelance’ or ‘self-employed’, HMRC’s Employment Status or offer work? Can teachers turn employed, and others that you need to fear. The British Council Having more than one string
meaning the schools don’t have Indicator (http://tools.hmrc. work down? Can they work for have to do as an employee. randomly checks employment to your employment bow helps
to make National Insurance gov.uk/esi/screen/ESI/en-GB/ a rival school? The guide asked Recent court and tribunal cases contracts to ensure these are too. There is a pool of genuinely
(payroll social security taxes) summary?user=guest). We such questions as, ‘Under the such as Hall v Lorimer make it HMRC compliant. If there is freelance specialist EFL teachers,
contributions or give paid holi- loaded the details of one ‘self- terms of their contract, if the easier for some teachers (more no contract or there are a lot of mostly moonlighting writers and
days, sickness pay or maternity employed’ EFL contract and worker is unable or unwilling to accurately trainers) delivering ‘freelance contracts’ in a school actors, on England’s south coast
pay. Anxious to get as much generated an ‘employment sta- carry out the work personally, occasional tailor-made courses they inspect, they may well who work in this way. Local
tax revenue as possible, HMRC tus outcome’ – a handy pdf that are they obliged to send someone to be self-employed. But the raise this issue with the insti- schools ring round until they find
takes a keen interest in whether is valid in a court of law. This else to do it?’ The ability to send Gazette understands this doesn’t tution and in some cases may one of them who’s free to do –
a worker is an employee – with told us that ‘the worker is an in a substitute is a key feature in cover ordinary general English put the school’s accreditation say – a short business English
income tax and National Insur- employee, based on a low degree establishing self-employment, teachers teaching ‘regular time- under review. You might like course or an Ielts prep boot camp.
ance liable to be deducted at of control of substitution, control, though one ‘self-employed’ con- tabled hours’, the intermediate to point out to your school that The nature of the demand for spe-
source by the employer. Genu- financial risk, business structure’. tract we’ve seen forbids it. Other class between half past nine the lack of proper contracts may cialist courses makes it easier for
inely self-employed people must In the eyes of the feared UK tax determiners of self-employment and twelve every weekday, for influence the outcome of their schools and genuine freelanc-
fill in annual tax returns and authority, the working conditions include having to provide your example. These teachers have to inspection. The British Council, ers to manage such a job while
make their own NI contributions offered by the school make it an own equipment for the job and be employees. however, will not accept com- ‘resting’ between acting roles
(generally less than for employ- employer and therefore legally making good any work that turns If Tefl teaching is your main or plaints from teachers. or writing commissions. But, as
ees) themselves. obliged to make income tax and out to be sub-standard – hard to only job, it’s in your interests to Taking the school to court many schools have found out,
Under English law, not being NI deductions at source. do in teaching! be an employee, not a ‘false free- is almost impossible. Recent turning a teacher into a freelance
given employee status on a The HMRC guide to deter- There’s a long list of occu- lance’. Being an employee means cuts to the UK legal aid system is fraught with legal problems. n

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