am i being stiffed?

Question, do you live near Bakersfield?  That would make a big difference on whether or not you can qualify for reimbursements.  Also, were you told upfront that this was a position that had hours that fluctated?  Typically, we explain all of that upfront so that you know what you are walking in to.  If you do live far from Bakersfield, they may not be giving you stipends because there isn't any guarantee of hours.  Typically budgets are made based on a set 36-40 hours per week and since this doesn't seem certain, they may have raised your hourly to cover what potential expenses you will accrue.  I hope that makes sense. 

That I'm not certain of. All our travelers work under us so we deduct taxes, put in reimbursements,  etc as any other job would.  I would need to defer that question to traveltax.com. He's on this website to so if you can, contact him. I'm sure he can help.  If you have any further problems or really feel uncomfortable, you may want to consider if this is the right choice.  I hope it all works out for you and feel free to contact me anytime. 

gbd

Maybe some of these pointers will help

1) The governmnent doesn't reimburse you for anything. The company/employer does.
2) Reimbursements in the travel world apply to transportation, lodging and meals
3) An employer can reimburse you for the items in #2 when they are duplicated- when you maintain a primary home and then are encumbered with a 2nd set of living expenses because work demands that you be away temporarily (this is the "tax home" concept and I am simplifying)

Your postion off is not really a standard travel contract, its an offer to work as a self employed individual with one rate, no reimbursements. Instead of receiving reimbursements, you deduct the expenses you have off the amount that you are paid. A lot of traverlers work as independent contractors, but if you have never done so in the past, its a completely different universe and you will need to get professsional tax advice either from a firm like ours or another one that you trust.

The variable hours is quite a different issue from the pay/reimbursement questions. There are plenty of 36/40 contracts out there and you may want to compare those to the one you are being offered currently.

I’m sorry Joseph I actually got it from the NATHO Travel Tax FAQs pdf we have here at the office.  I looked through the IRS website and did not see anything that matched up with what NATHO mentioned.  Here is the link I refer to when I speak with my travelers; http://www.irs.gov/formspubs/article/0,,id=238749,00.html

I have a question for you Joseph.  More than a few times I have run into other staffing agencies paying more than the allotted amount given per day on the IRS and GSA websites.  We get our number by multiplying the daily amount by 7 and then dividing it by 40.  This seems to be the norm as far as I know.  But on a few occasions I have seen other contracts that are paying far over the allotted amount and the travelers are making anywhere between $2200 - $2600 a week with normal bill rates.  Do you know anything about this?    

Jeremy:
I have a question for you Joseph.  More than a few times I have run into other staffing agencies paying more than the allotted amount given per day on the IRS and GSA websites.  We get our number by multiplying the daily amount by 7 and then dividing it by 40.  This seems to be the norm as far as I know.  But on a few occasions I have seen other contracts that are paying far over the allotted amount and the travelers are making anywhere between $2200 - $2600 a week with normal bill rates.  Do you know anything about this?    

Jeremy, 
If someone gets paid over the allotted amounts for the GOV per diem/housing then they should be taxed on it. That is according to the GOV reg you referenced. But, I will gladly take one of those contracts. hehehe

 

You can ask for guaranteed hours in your contract like any other contracted employee.   is $46 a good wage for you?  Do you know how much the hospital is paying the company?   How much would you make with a regular travel package with perdiems and stipend?  
Can you wait until tax time to see the benefit of self employment or would you rather give away more of your bill rate in order to get the "tax free reimbursements"?  
If you do IC, remember to budget for paying quarterly taxes.  

To respond to the question about independant contractor. I have been traveling for years and even though technically we are independant contractors you never want to claim that you are, this will be a red flag to the IRS and most probably set you up for an audit. Always work as a traveler and get all that is coming to you don't work as an independant contractor and if they want you to do that switch agencies immediately. 

RE indep contractor :   if you keep good business records it doesnt matter what kind of business you are in.  I would rather have my own books audited than some company that may have fraudulently made me believe I was entitled to non-taxed money when I was not.  If you get audited as an employee and your stipends prove taxable, you are on the hook for the full tax, the employer isnt going to be part of the audit nor will they kick in their portion.  Dont be afraid to be self employed.  

Depending on the hospital in Bakersfield.  We have a hospital there where we offer our Independent Contractors over $50/hr.  So in my opinion as an independent contractor you are not getting near what you should get at $46/hr.

Jack Swinney
OneStaff Medical
877-783-1483
jack@onestaffmedical.com
www.onestaffmedical.com