Difference Between Employees And Self-employed Contractors

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN EMPLOYEES AND SELF-EMPLOYED CONTRACTORS
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Difference between Employees and Self-Employed Contractors
Introduction
One of the most important labor laws in Britain is employment law, which deals with the rules governing the relationships between employee and employer (Opkins, 2010). The engagement between these two parties involves the existence of a contractual relationship where one party presents an offer that should be accepted by the other party. In such a scenario, one party is the employer who is the person or the company that offers the contract, and the other party is an employee, the person who accepts the contractual terms (Opkins, 2010). For a long time now, there has been a huge challenge in determining whether an individual is an employee or an independent worker. Those individuals who do not work as employees are referred to as independent contractors. Some of the acts regulating the employment status of the employee but not independent contractor include Employment Rights Act (ERA) and the Trade Union and Labor relations Act (TULRA) enacted in 1996 and 1992 respectively (legislation.gov.uk, 2018). ERA 1996 is a crucial act that mainly deals with redundancy, protection of wages, unfair dismissal, and notice rights. TULRA, on the other hand, deals with trade unions and their relationships with their members and employers, collective bargaining, and industrial action.
How Courts Distinguish between Employee and Self-employed Contractor
In addition to the contract of service, various other tests are used by courts to determine whether a person is under employee or self-employed employment status.
Control Test
The control test is used to gauge the level of control an employer has over their employees. Control originates from the division and execution of various roles and work time (Burchell et al., 1999, 5). The test got its name from a case referred to as Lordship Bramwell v Noake, where it was argued that an employee must be submissive to the orders of their employers on how work should be done. The employer has the power to control what an employee should do as well as the manner in which a particular work should be executed. One example in this category is a contract involving a footballer and the club. Although the skilled player could be given more freedom to choose the manner in which they can perform their work, their jobs are closely monitored by their employers because they are under the direction of the club and control of captain at all times (Burchell et al., 1999, 5). Also, the methods of play, training, and discipline of a player are all controlled by their masters, and as a result, they are considered to be employees. However, in contemporary times, control test has been proven to have some weaknesses, and it is now considered less effective due to the presence of several specialists with the ability to monopolize a certain skill, therefore, eliminating the need of control by the master. Thus, the level of control by the employer to the employee has significantly reduced, and the control test is no longer considered suitable (Burchell et al., 1999, 5).
Integration Test...