[Info-vax] HP contract paying a whopping $55/hr on-site in Irvine CA

[David J Dachtera]

FrankS wrote:
> 
> On Jan 1, 11:27 am, David J Dachtera <djesys... at spam.comcast.net>
> wrote:
> > Well, not sure how you figured $52K. Like another poster, I make it
> > closer to $110K.
> 
> [snip]
> If you're a consultant and you're thinking that $55/hr is the same as
> earning $110k/yr in a salaried job then you are living in a fog.

It depends.

If the client will let you get away with billing for "workaholic" hours,
then yes - it will go considerably higher.

Projects almost always have budgets. When your billing begins to grossly
exceed the project budget for your position, you will likely be let go.

It could be that you can bill for evenings, weekends and other overtime
until the the project budget goes bust, but this may or may not work in
your favor.

The client may limit your billing to 8 hours per standard work day, but
expect you to put in longer hours and provide after-hours support like a
salaried person. It depends on the terms of your (sub-)contract.

For comparisons between contract and salaried positions, better to use
"normal" working hours for a fairer comparison.

I covered holidays, PTO, taxes and benefits in my comments re: W2 vs.
1099.

I'd consider $55/hr to be W2 pay, and equivalent to $110/hr for 1099 to
cover taxes, benefits, etc. W2 salaries will always be hourly-rated
using 2080 hours per year.

$55/hr for 1099 would be roughly equivalent to $27/hr W2, which buys you
a recent graduate with zero real-world experience - so no experience
with VMS, VAX, Alpha and I64, but not much more.

D.J.D.