p.1 #1 · Moving from 1099 Contract to W2 Full-Time Doing Media for Company — How to Handle Gear?
Hey all,
I've been working for a company the last ~3 months or so doing motorsports photography on-site, as well as social media management (content calendars, copywriting, and so on).
The owner liked my work enough to offer me a full-time salary position with benefits. This is good for me, and I've already accepted.
But one question I have:
How does one handle gear in a situation like this? Thus far, I've been using my own, totally fair and expected for contract work. It's a sizable kit, at least for a one-man band. FX3, A7IV, 70-200 GM1, Zeiss 50mm 1.4, 35mm 1.8, etc etc, plus all the peripherals — wireless DJI lav mics, DJI RS3 gimbal, etc, etc., plus Macbook Pro, iPad Pro, hard drives, and so on.
Now that I'm transitioning to a full-time employee, what does this look like? Monthly stipend paid to me for wear and tear of my gear? I can't possibly expect a small business owner (I'm the first employee!) to invest $~15k+ to replicate my exact setup, right? Am I effectively now renting my own gear to the business while working? How does this go?
Thanks so much for any advice, those of you who have been in similar spots.
p.1 #3 · Moving from 1099 Contract to W2 Full-Time Doing Media for Company — How to Handle Gear?
dienliv wrote:
I wanted offer an analogy. A lot of auto technicians that are W-2 have to buy their own tools.
I suppose that's true; but that's pretty much the only field I can think of where employees are expected to bring their own tools to do the work.
For example, I couldn't imagine an office worker showing up to an empty office and having to buy their own chair, desk, extension cord, computer, monitor, keyboard, mouse, and wifi router.
Nor could I imagine a CNC operator having to bring their own CNC table.
Ultimately we're working out a rental that's well below market value. I priced out my kit on lensrentals.com for a monthly rate (ended up being ~$4K/mo) and I also included some spreadsheet data on the original MSRP and market values of each piece of my gear (which was a number I don't even want to talk about lol) and we landed on an add'l $500/mo, paid separately to me on a 1099 basis outside of the W2.
It was an idea some Redditors had that were/are photographers who have been in a similar boat. (Non-media company hires first full-time media.)
p.1 #4 · Moving from 1099 Contract to W2 Full-Time Doing Media for Company — How to Handle Gear?
teletubby wrote:
I suppose that's true; but that's pretty much the only field I can think of where employees are expected to bring their own tools to do the work.
For example, I couldn't imagine an office worker showing up to an empty office and having to buy their own chair, desk, extension cord, computer, monitor, keyboard, mouse, and wifi router.
And yet, a WFH worker will often supply all of that themselves.
p.1 #5 · Moving from 1099 Contract to W2 Full-Time Doing Media for Company — How to Handle Gear?
RoamingScott wrote:
And yet, a WFH worker will often supply all of that themselves.
Truth! Depends on the field, I suppose. And how willing you are to ask for stuff. I tend to not be shy about it.
But I also like unnecessarily expensive stuff, sometimes. Feels strange asking an employer to buy a Nuphy Air96 mechanical keyboard. Do I need it? No. But do I like dancy RGB lights? Yes, yes I do.
But for other WFH stuff I've always tried to get it in writing that they'll deck me out with a standing desk or something.
p.1 #6 · Moving from 1099 Contract to W2 Full-Time Doing Media for Company — How to Handle Gear?
I'd suggest you talk with your accountant and ask what the monthly depreciated value of the necessary kit would be, then present that to the owner for a monthly stipend or a percentage of that value. You might have to make decisions on "top tier" or "will do" kit to get the job done for an evaluation.
p.1 #8 · Moving from 1099 Contract to W2 Full-Time Doing Media for Company — How to Handle Gear?
RoamingScott wrote:
And yet, a WFH worker will often supply all of that themselves.
Yes and no. AFAIK in many states (and countries) technically an employer has to provide the tools to do the job if they want to class someone as an employee, otherwise that person is considered a contract worker only. Most decent employers will provide equipment and/or a budget to buy equipment and furniture to a WFH employee. Whether the employee chooses to use that equipment is another question, but some employers mandate it in the case of computers.
But working for small companies is always a lesson in compromises and rule bending. I once worked for a small NYC media company using my own laptop and was paid 1099 but the company insisted I be in its (small) office 5 days a week, which technically it could not force me to do since I was a contractor. I went in anyway because it was no skin off my nose and I wanted to help them as much as I could. Oh, and the office was nicely air conditioned, which was a blessing during NYC summers
Perhaps a good compromise for the OP would be to ask his new employer to pay for comprehensive insurance for the gear -- comprehensive enough that it covers wear-and-tear related repairs or replacement. Maybe throw in a subscription to Sony Pro Support as well.
p.1 #9 · Moving from 1099 Contract to W2 Full-Time Doing Media for Company — How to Handle Gear?
It would have been better for the OP to have a B2B relationship to begin with and not being a 1099 at all. That way you are an employee of your own company and you get a lot more right offs including all of your gear that you buy for your own business.
p.1 #10 · Moving from 1099 Contract to W2 Full-Time Doing Media for Company — How to Handle Gear?
I spent many uears working as a still photographer on films and tv shows. Even though I was a crew member I was expected to provide my own tools. I, and others, were paid a daily box rental in addition to a salary. I’ve been retired for a few years, but when I left the box rental was $250 a day.
You could do the same but probably on par with your paydays.
