Re: Jobs Future for Technical Communication

[Marianne Adams <handson!boston -dot- handson -dot- com!marianne -at- UUNET -dot- UU -dot- NET>]

Mike Uhl writes

I have detected a
clear and unpleasant pattern: companies are hiring fewer and
fewer people, choosing instead to contract work from people through
agencies. The agencies skim a percentage, anywhere from 5 to 60
percent, of the billed rate. The contract communicator gets the
rest.
 ----------
While the cooperative you suggest is a great idea for those who want to be
independent, I think you're being too hard on agencies. My experience is
that a good (and ethical) agency - particularly one that understands tech
writers - can be an invaluable ally, particularly for those of us who hate
marketing. An agency can ensure that you get paid by a slow-paying client,
can negotiate difficult working conditions, and can help avoid long lapses
between contracts by marketing you while you're still working.

Even the W-2 you malign can be an advantage. Payment by W-2 is, in most
cases, the only really legal way to go, because most of us are not really
totally independent and don't fit the qualifications set up by the IRS. I'm
a writer, not an accountant, and I'd just as soon taxes are withheld than
deal with estimated taxes and all that stuff. W-2 employment also means that
I'm covered by unemployment insurance - a nice benefit that I haven't had to
use much, but keeps me from panicking between assignments.

I grant that I've been lucky. I've found a couple of agencies I enjoy
working with, who keep me busy,  and who pay me regularly and fairly. I've
also found a couple of good contracts on my own. I make more money when
working direct, but I'm not sure that it's enough to make up for the extra
taxes and worries. (Yes, I know that you can deduct more stuff when you're
direct, but there's a limit, and my couple of direct contracts a year seem
to be sufficient to cover most of my reasonable deductions.)

Marianne Adams
marianne -at- boston -dot- handson -dot- com