I am an independent contractor. I am not an employee. Sometimes when someone seeks to work with a Virtual Assistant they do not understand the dynamics of the relationship which can cause issues and problems. The best that I can explain this relationship to you is that it is just like any other service you outsource.
Even if you take your clothing to the local dry cleaners, you simply drop off your clothing, and the company does their job without any input from you.You don’t tell them exactly what type of cleaner to use, what time of day they must do them. You simply know that you’ll drop them off and pick them up in 24 hours or 7 days, depending on the service you choose.
Another example is if you contract with an Architect to build your home. You look at the style of work the architect does. You talk about what you want, and both of you together determine whether or not your ideas gel and if you can work together.
Additionally, after you get to know them a bit via an interview, and agree on fees, you contract with them by giving a deposit and signing a contract. After that, the architect designs your home. You might ask for an edit here and there, but the project is done by the architect without much input from you on a daily basis. You’ve hired the architect for their expertise, you’ve entrusted her to see your vision through, and you’ll get your project on the date agreed upon.
Okay now say you hire a secretary in house. Of course you are then going to train this secretary to do each task in your way. She might have her own way of doing things, but you are going to require her to dress how you want, show up at a certain time, clock in, eat lunch at certain times, file the paperwork a certain way. It goes on and on.
A Virtual Assistant has no relationship to the secretary. If you want to hire someone who is a secretary who telecommutes and must sign in at a certain time, must answer her phone at a certain time, and do all tasks a certain way, then you’ve hired a Secretary, not a Virtual Assistant. In this case you need to pay the appropriate payroll taxes and offer the same benefits that you do your other in house workers.
While it is true that a Virtual Assistant does many of the tasks that a secretary or administrative support person would do she does not do them in the manner of an employee. She is a business owner. You give her the tasks to do, and she does them by the deadline you’ve provided. But she does them in her own way, with her own flair, with her own tools, and in her own time — as long as she meets the deadlines.
If you cross the line and give her an email address, a phone number, have her clock in and out each day, you micro manage each task then you’ve hired an employee not a Virtual Assistant.
Keep yourself familiar with the IRS Rules regarding independent contractors and you will avoid these issues.
