If recent history teaches anything, it is that no industry is immune from attacks on employers who allegedly misclassify workers as independent contractors. In an offbeat case, this has occurred to a company that utilized medical interpreters. The case is entitled In Re: Ingrid L. Vega, d/b/a Professional Interpreters of Erie v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Bow-Wow: Court Finds Pet Sitters Are Employees, Not Independent Contractors
In an off-beat case that revolved around the IRS twenty-factor test for independent contractor, an appellate court in Missouri has affirmed the state Labor Commission ruling that caretakers working for a pet sitting company were statutory employees, rather than independent contractors. The case is entitled 417 Pet Sitting LLC v. Division of Employment Security,
New USDOL Independent Contractor Rule Helps Putative Employers
The Trump Administration has tried to help business and employers in many ways, including loosening USDOL rules (and views) over many things. One topic of special interest on this front has been on the independent contractor issue. The USDOL has taken another step now in that direction, by proposing a new rule on the classification
Company Asserts Novel Defense In Fighting FLSA Independent Contractor Misclassification Action
When people are employees, the deductions that may be made from their wages are limited and many items that would be classified as employer business expenses cannot be deducted from worker pay. When individuals are independent contractors, these otherwise forbidden deductions may be effected because of this supposed non-employee status. When those two worlds collide,
New Jersey DOL Poster Basically Invites Workers to Claim They Are Not Independent Contractors
The State of New Jersey (and many other states) has started to tighten up laws regarding independent contractor status. One troubling component (to management-side practitioners and employers alike) of this New Jersey initiative is to compel employers to post a notice that explains elements of independent contractor law and, essentially, invites workers to file suits
Independent Contractor Battles Fought on Many Fronts, Though Same Issue Persists
The significance of the issue of independent contractor cannot be underestimated these days and this battle is being waged on any number of fronts, including when an entity may or may not enter a litigation as an intervener. In a recent case, a New Jersey real estate trade association has been denied to enter an
Uber Case Shows How Tough New Jersey Is on Independent Contractor Determinations
I have blogged numerous times about the strictness of the New Jersey A-B-C test as applied to possible independent contractors. The prime example of this is the very recent assessment of Uber for $650,000,000 in back-due unemployment contributions. This incredibly large assessment, certain to be litigated about for years, is a sign to employers, large,
NJ Employer Wins Independent Contractor Case, Beats ABC Test
The New Jersey independent contractor test is one of the toughest for a putative employer to prevail upon. So, when an employer does do that, it is a great day for the employer community and that is what has happened in the case of a law firm who fought the UI claim of its paralegal,
New Jersey DOL Very Tough on Supposed Misclassification of Independent Contractors
The New Jersey DOL is very aggressive on the issue of independent contractor status, i.e. the issue of misclassification. The latest, perhaps best (or worst) illustration of this view is the agency’s determination that court reporters are employees for purposes of the Unemployment Law. This errant decision, which cuts against traditional modes of thinking on
New Jersey Wage Deduction Class Action Revived by Appellate Division: More Independent Contractor Fallout
When employers classify individuals as independent contractors, they are not obligated to provide them with certain benefits, as they would statutory employees. Sometimes, if those individuals are found to not be independent contractors, those “failures” come back oftentimes to haunt the employers. Another example of this phenomenon has happened in that a New Jersey appellate