What is an Independent Contractor?

An independent contractor is someone who works as a self-employed individual for short-term or long-term organizational projects. Independent offshore contractors are hired on time-based contracts by the companies but it is crucial to understand that they still remain non-employees and are not added to the company’s payroll. 

Independent contractors have complete charge over their working hours and workplace. They also have their own resources and techniques required to perform the tasks and choose flexible timings to submit the work. They are responsible for managing and paying their own employment taxes. They also cannot access any employee benefits including health insurance or retirement plans from the hiring company. 

However, numerous reports say that independent contractors earn more on an hourly basis by a significant percentage. Working professionals from any career path can be independent contractors such as financial consultants, marketers, HR professionals, software engineers, and website designers, among others. 

However, people often get confused between the terms independent contractor vs employee and independent contractor vs freelancer. To clear this confusion, we have explained these terms vividly in the later half of this guide. 

Evolution of Independent Contractors

As the global economy continued shifting to new phases, the role of independent contractors grew more and more significant with each passing phase. Today, 36% of the US working population is engaging in careers as independent contractors. Additionally, 46.6% of the global workforce is reported to be self-employed currently.

Flexibility and autonomy are two main driving points for working professionals to shift their careers as independent contractors. Flocks of people from various industries and companies created platforms for themselves to work remotely at their own ease and started utilizing various advanced digital tools and platforms to serve quality work to the companies.

FOR MORE – What is an Independent Contractor? Guide for Global Businesses