However, because the payroll service agency plays no role in finding the job for the writer, their markup should be less than that of a broker as described above. As with brokers, payroll service agencies that provide benefits to the writer are justified in small additional markups proportional to the actual cost of the benefits. When an employer requires that a contractor or temporary employee be paid through a payroll service agency, it should be the right of the writer to select which payroll agency to use. It is an unfair restraint of free trade for an employer both to require that a writer be paid by a third party and to restrict the free choice of the writer to one especially favored agency. Without competition between agencies for the business of both employers and writers, the agencies have no economic incentive to concern themselves with meeting the needs of the writers.
Recruiters find employees or contractors for an employer.
There is a wide variety in the way recruiters are used by employers, but from the writer's perspective the recruiter's business relationship with the employer does not matter. If a recruiter fills a W2 employment position for the employer, the employer pays the recruiter's fee and the writer is not affected. If the recruiter fills a contract or temporary position for the employer, the writer will either contract directly with the employer or work through a broker or payroll service agency as described above. A contractor contracts with an employer to provide writing services and then subcontracts part or all of the work to another writer or writers. Unlike a broker, a contractor remains primarily responsible for producing a satisfactory product, and he or she is actively involved in meeting with the customer, commenting on content, supervising, and in some cases, training the subcontracting writer.