Just the other day an article in Silicon Republic was promoting a new mobile application designed for contractors to get a quick snap shot of  the current daily rates based on their job titles. We have to say that we're delighted to hear that a service like this exists for daily rate contractors who in many ways can be left out on their own. We've had these type of services around for a long time for permanent employees  with sites like "Pay Scale" and "Glass Door" giving people another avenue to explore when researching their salaries though it is advisable to get market knowledge from numerous sources.
 
However, the article mentions that "The findings are significant insofar as IT contractors are usually in the dark as to the figures earned by recruiters for their work", so we're setting the record straight. At a first glance you would think that recruiters are scraping large fees from contractors salaries but this is simply not the case.

There are two ways in which salaries are calculated, we'll refer to them as "all in" and "to the contractor" though different agencies will call them different things they are the two most prevalent. If you are paid "to the contractor" it simply means that the quoted daily rate is what you will be getting paid in full, so using the example in the article, a Java Developer getting €400 will be no worse off when the recruiters are paid for their service. It's calculated based on the rate and paid entirely independent of it so it is in our best interests as recruiters to get contractors who meet the exact specification to earn that €400.

However, some clients will request that they will be contracting on a budget this means that the maximum that will be paid is usually a slightly more generous sum of money. In order for us to provide the service we make the calculation like so;

The company offer €500 maximum between the company and the contractor, we will, for example, charge a fee of 10% a day which is predetermined by the clients and ourselves. This means that we take €50 and the contractor receives €450 per day and because the market is so candidate driven, we will seek the maximum for the contractor worth €450 euro rather than attempting to rip off someone who will already know the market. So regardless of how you are paid, you are paid the market rate.

For every day that you provide a service to that company we will charge that €50 to cover the costs of search, administration and the consultant and company fee which keep recruitment companies in business, no hidden charges or fees, check your recent agreements, you won't find any. What's more we do this in high volumes and with the quickest possible turn around times to ensure we can make a profit and keep the doors open and keep contractors and permanent employees busy working.

You may ask in the case of "all in", how on earth  do recruitment companies get off taking €50 a day from my €500 rate. Well, in this case the company are shifting the responsibility of payment to the recruitment company, but that doesn't answer the question. We charge that fee because we are providing a service, an end to end solution for both contractor and the client making the process as easy as possible for both parties. We satisfy the human resource requirements of our clients and the employment and salary requirements of contractors taking the headache out of searching for themselves and the related administration that goes with that (Mountains worth!).

Contractors who have gone solo will know what we are referring to. From drafting contracts, representing both parties at interview stage and assisting in the payroll and taxation where appropriate and in some cases dispute resolution, negotiating rates and pre-emptive search for the next opportunity when a client's projects are coming to an end, among many other services that happen behind the scenes and always have done so. You have to remember that particularly where skills shortages are present the ball is very much in your court. Always remember that if you don't like the rate, don't sign the contract and if you are unsure of the three way arrangement, ask about it and review it.

If you have any questions about the nature of contracting and need some advice or guidance we're on hand to help and more than happy to shed some light on the subject.

BluePrint Appointments have a select number of exclusive opportunities to join an elite graduate program that gets you right to the heart of a world-class professional services firm.

On behalf of our client, a leading Fortune 500 company,  we are looking to recruit top class graduates who are interested in working with IT and Telecoms industry who are hungry for success and want the opportunity to fast track into management.

Exceptional candidates should ideally be a recent university graduate with First Class Honours and be technology savvy within the mathematics,  science, IT or engineering discipline. As you would expect working for a large company with a global presence, an extremely competitive remuneration and benefits package is available.   

For further information, please contact Craig Smart csmart@blueprintappointments.com

There was great news for Northern Ireland and Belfast in particular recently as a recent study showed that job vacancies are up  39%!

The study by Simply Hired lead to positive news overall for all of the UK, however, the study drew the conclusion that over the past month, Belfast has become a simmering pot of new roles which is great for us all. A representative from Simply Hired commented "Belfast experienced September's largest job gains with a 39.4% month-over-month increase in vacancies. Over the past several months Belfast has demonstrated impressive job creation, maintaining job growth percentages in the double digits."

Daniel Grant, Digital and Online Recruitment Specialist at BluePrint Appointments commented "These latest figures are a real boost for all concerned as they show a renewed confidence in the market by employers and candidates actively searching for work and those who are in current employment to seek their next position. Across BluePrint Appointments in Northern Ireland, available positions are up on average 12% on the previous six months. In particular, those sectors charting pronounced increases in available jobs include; IT, Digital and Online Marketing roles, Pharmaceutical and Engineering, which shows that the jobs market is beginning to recover from a very tough few years."

As the Northern Irish economy beginning to prepare for the upturn, these latest figures shows that employers that cut staffing levels are taking a close look at the core skills needed in new hires in order to rebuild operational effectiveness. It is a good time to be in Northern Ireland, as our economy begins to attract organisations - the latest announcement that Mediasmiths are opening a new office called creating 15 new jobs within Belfast.

Twitter joins the "digital media cluster" of high-profile social networking and technology multinationals with bases in Ireland, including Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, PayPal, eBay and Microsoft. This revelation further enhances Ireland's reputation as the European capital for web and social media companies.

IDA, Chief Executive, Barry O'Leary reported "IDA is absolutely thrilled that Twitter has decided to establish an international office in Ireland. Twitter is a fantastic addition to Ireland's dynamic digital media cluster and we are excited to support the company's continued international growth."

Dublin is the third location where Twitter has opened outside the US, with the other offices in London and Tokyo. It was widely reported that Dublin was competing with London and Berlin for consideration for Twitter's European HQ.

The micro-blogging site currently employs approximately 650 staff globally, according to its headquarters in San Francisco. Although no information has been provided on possible job numbers, it is hoped that Twitter's Irish operations would follow the lead of its American counterparts, Google and Facebook, by starting small and expanding rapidly. Google now employs more than 2,000 employees while Facebook has more than 200 in Dublin staff. It is understood the initial roles at Twitter will be in finance, marketing and user support.

Richard Bruton, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation called the Twitter announcement a "massive win" that showed there was "real ground for Ireland's claim to be the Internet capital of Europe". "It also shows that, despite our difficulties, we still have real strengths as an economy.The challenge now is to build on our strengths and the presence in Ireland of the world-leading companies like Twitter to build an indigenous engine of growth and get people back to work." The announcement "shows that we have real grounds for optimism in facing that challenge", he added.