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Hire workers – top tips!

Hire workers for temp jobs securely

There are some important considerations when you are looking to hire workers for temp jobs. Here are our top 10 points to remember… We have also added a few notes on how Grafter can help you with each of the points!

1.    Review the worker's skills and experience

The first thing to check before you hire workers, is that they have the necessary skills, experience and qualifications for the job. Some workers will have a good CV but many working in labour-focussed roles may not have a have an up-to date or well written CV. It may be poorly formatted or structured, or could be hard to find the information you need. It may also be hard to compare with other applicant’s CVs because all the formats are all different. Grafter provides an online template for the workers to develop their CV easily. Just by completing some simple steps and questions. Starting with the basics, they can build-up their CV over time by adding more information as they develop their skills, or just have the time to do it. When you review candidates on Grafter for a job, they will all have the same format of CVs. So, you can easily find the information you need. It makes comparison between candidates much easier.

2.    Check the worker's qualifications

As well as the skills and experience your role may require. There may also be some mandatory qualifications to check before you hire a worker. Like CSCS cards for the building and construction industry or a driving licence for driving jobs. These documents may need to be shown on site before they can start the job. If the worker turns-up without it, you will have to turn them away and could be left short for the day. Grafter can help with this. It provides a facility for the workers to add all their certificates and cards to their profile. So you can check their ID and make sure it is valid, before they turn-up for the day. Or, as long as someone has a smart phone, you can check document on the day. No more turning people away just because they forgot their CSCS card!

3.    Get recommendations for the worker

As well as a good CV, you should get some recommendations or a reference for the worker you are looking to hire. This will back-up their CV and provide assurance the person you are speaking too is going to be able to do the job and will work hard for you. Grafter has built in reviews on the platform. These are validated as can only be added by people who hired the worker on the platform before. So, you know the review is genuine and not written by a mate! These are all kept as part of the workers profile for easy viewing before you hire workers.

4.    Make sure you ID check the worker

When you hire workers, are you sure who they are? Are they using a fake name? Could you track them down if anything went missing or there was an accident and you needed to inform someone? Grafter performs an ID check of the workers when they apply for jobs on the platform. We also capture their bank details and address so they can be paid. This means they can’t fake ID and are trackable through their bank account and address if required.

5.    Check their right to work in the UK

As an employer, it is your responsibility to check that workers you hire have the right to work in the UK. You must do this before you hire them. You need to make sure they have the correct passport, visa or other documentation to prove their right to work in the UK. Grafter cannot do the checks for you. Only you can do this. However we do make it easy by allowing the worker to upload right to work documents as part of their profile.  As a client you can ask them to upload any documents you wish to see before you hire them. If they have not already. This allows you to check their documents remotely before you hire the worker. You can also check again when they turn-up to check any photos match. This means you know they can work. You won’t have to turn them away and be short-staffed that day.

6.    Get a hire agreement for your worker

No one likes having to put in place an agreement just for a temporary job. It is a lot of paperwork hassle for short-term engagements. It is probably not worth paying a lawyer to make sure the contract is right. The worker may be reluctant to sign anything, and you have to chase them around for a signature. The document never gets signed, or the job gets delayed while you wait for them to review and sign the contract. With Grafter there is a standard online agreement that everyone signs-up to by hiring or being hired through the platform. The job details from when you post the job, and any conversations help on the platforms ‘chat’ feature, are all captured as evidence in support of the online agreement. Therefore with Grafter you know that from the moment you hire a worker, that you have the security of the online agreement immediately in place.

7.    Keep the worker incentivised

How do you keep workers incentivised and working hard for you once you have hired them? Do you offer them a tip, which just makes the job more expensive, or just make them lots of tea!? Another benefit of the reviews system on the platform (as mentioned earlier) is that you get to review people after the job. If they work hard for you then you can reward them with a good review. This costs you nothing (just 2 minutes of your time). It gives them the reward of improving their profile, to help them find more work in the future. By posting a review for a worker, you are not only helping them find work, if it is a good review! You are also contributing back to the community of clients. This is a virtuous cycle - providing others with information to help them hire the best worker for their job. In the same way other people’s reviews helped you!

8.    Check the worker's tax liability

If you hire a worker, even for temporary jobs, you need to be sure the tax arrangements are in place. So you are not going to be liable for unpaid tax, or for supporting people to avoid paying tax by paying them cash-in-hand. By joining Grafter, the workers have certified that they are self-employed and responsible for their own tax. So as the client, you know you are not responsible for their income tax. Also, Grafter has CIS (construction Industry Scheme) baked into the process. So, if you collect tax for your workers as part of CIS, then Grafter shows the job with all calculations and does the tax calculation for you. This way the worker knows up-front what they will get paid. Also how much tax you are withholding so there can be no quibbling later. When you pay, just enter the time worked and the correct tax is applied to the payment for the worker. You then have the tax calculation recorded on your account page in Grafter for future reference, such as completing your CIS return.

9.    Pay the worker and get invoices

If we are honest, many workers are not brilliant at the paperwork side of things. How do you know you will get a proper invoice for your records from the worker? Will you just get a crumpled piece of paper? Or maybe just a text message with how much they would like to be paid. With Grafter the invoices are automatically generated for the worker on the platform. You will get a properly formatted clean and clear document. This is stored in your account page for when you need them. Or you can download as a PDF and keep electronically or print for the paper form. The invoices are emailed to you when you may payment. So if nowhere else you will always have a copy in your email system! ------------ We hope this helps you think about how to hire a workers for temp jobs more securely. If you would like to find out more about how Grafter works click here. To start hiring then please go to our dedicated client page here. Or if you are looking for temporary work please click here to register