Essential Hacks That Will Help You Protect Your Rights If You’re Self-employed

Being self-employed has many benefits – you get to determine who you work with and when, and you’re your own boss, however, it also means that you might not have as many rights as a person that’s working for someone else. In addition, you’re most likely completely self-reliant when it comes to taking care of your health insurance, pension, and taxes. Because your position is more exposed in that sense, it’s important to look at the ways you can protect your rights when you’re self-employed.

1. Have The Right Insurance

First thing’s first – you need to check what your existing insurance policy entails and whether it covers your business or working status as well. For example, if you have home insurance, and you’re working from home, it could be that you’re completely covered in all aspects, or you might need to look into working from home insurance as well. Depending on your insurance, if your work computer breaks while at home, the repairs (or replacement) might be covered by the home insurance. 

However, if something were to happen outside of your home while you’re working – you’ll most likely be on your own there. The good news is there are lots of insurance options and insurance companies out there. As long as you do your research and compare prices and policies, you’ll find coverage that works for you.

2. Employed And Self-Employed

Another extremely important aspect of protecting your rights as a self-employed person is looking through all the tax regulations. This can seem like an incredibly complex task, but it’s definitely worth it in the end. For starters, it’s very important that you know where you stand when it comes to your employment status and the regulations surrounding it. A person can be both employed and self-employed at the same time. 

In essence, you could be considered employed in relation to your employment rights, but self-employed when it comes to your tax obligations. This would be the most beneficial position to be in, so it’s important to go over the laws and regulations of your country and state in order to see how this could legally be arranged. Talking it over with a lawyer that specializes in this field of law is also a great way to go.

3. Always Have A Contract

Lastly, never accept any job, no matter how great it is, if you don’t have a contract that clearly stipulates what each party is obliged to do, as well as the consequences, should either or both parties decide to terminate the contract early, or if one or more of them are in breach of their obligations. 

In truth, this is the one aspect where you absolutely need a good lawyer – no matter what the contract states, since you’re an individual, you don’t really have much leverage outside of the threat to take someone to court over the breach of contract. Even if you have a great grasp of the law, attempting to represent yourself in court is rarely a good move for the layman.

Understanding your rights and taking the next step to protect them is crucial, but it starts with you and what you’re willing to do for yourself. Even though there are laws that provide protection, if you don’t uphold yourself as an individual who will stand their ground when things go south, there probably won’t be much anyone can do to help you. 

So research what kind of insurance is right for your specific situation, be completely clear of your employment status, and always have a contract that clearly outlines everything. This way, you’ll be able to protect your rights as a self-employed individual and avoid any unforeseeable trouble down the line.