The government has targeted the residential construction industry for its investigation because of its high number of immigrant workers that it employs and after recent investigations have found some construction contractors have been misclassifying
workers as independent contractors to get around wage laws, says Nancy J. Leppink, acting director of the department's wage and hour division.
In a new report, the IRS says that many employers are misidentifying millions of
workers as independent contractors instead of employees.
The Administrator's Interpretation 2015 - 1 expanded the «economic realities» test used to define the term «employee» for purposes of the Fair Labor Standards Act («FLSA»), jeopardizing the ability of employers to classify
workers as independent contractors.
In his article «The Dangers of Treating Home Operators as Independent Contractors,» Attorney Les Rosen, founder and CEO of nationwide background screening company Employment Screening Resources (ESR), reveals that some background screening firms treat at - home
workers as independent contractors: «The screening firm often has regular employees at the main office doing the same work, so that the so - called «independent contractors» are doing what regular employees do, but without a regular salary, or any benefits.»
In his article «The Dangers of Treating Home Operators as Independent Contractors,» Attorney Les Rosen, founder and CEO of nationwide background screening company Employment Screening Resources (ESR) and author of «The Safe Hiring Manual,» reveals that some background screening firms treat at - home
workers as independent contractors: «The screening firm often has regular employees at the main office doing the same work, so that the so - called «independent contractors» are doing what regular employees do, but without a regular salary, or any benefits.»
As previously reported on the ESR News blog «California SB 459 Enacts Stiff Penalties for Employers Willfully Misclassifying
Workers as Independent Contractors,» the passing of AB 459 and the growing trend of scrutinizing worker classification relates to the background screening industry since some background screening firms use at - home workers to make verification phone calls that may be misclassified as independent contractors.
Federal and state agencies have increased their enforcement efforts with respect to employers that allegedly have improperly classified
their workers as independent contractors and plaintiffs» attorneys target employers who classify personnel as exempt employees.
Many companies classify
workers as independent contractors (aka «freelancers») rather than employees to avoid the additional cost and paperwork involved in classifying them as employees.
Peter Straszynski discusses a recent court case that demonstrates the risks of mischaracterizing
workers as independent contractors.
Glendale - based Calcrete Construction, Inc. allegedly misclassified 175
workers as independent contractors.
California's top court issued a decision on April 30 making it harder for companies to classify
workers as independent contractors rather than employees.
This decision is one of several this year holding major companies like FedEx and Uber responsible for wrongfully treating
workers as independent contractors.
Insurance company sued for improperly classifying
workers as independent contractors instead of employees
The state's new «ABC» test will make it more difficult for companies to defend classifying
workers as independent contractors.
A sweeping California Supreme Court ruling that redefines when employers can classify
workers as independent... Read more
Many startups, like Uber and Lyft, have brought on their drivers or
workers as independent contractors, or more generally known as 1099 employees because of the 1099 form they fill out for the IRS.
Their concern is that many businesses classify
workers as independent contractors when they're actually employees.
If there is a long - standing practice in your industry in treating certain
workers as independent contractors, you probably can follow suit.
By paying
workers as independent contractors when they should be paid as employees, federal, state and local governments potentially miss out on tax revenue they would otherwise collect; this tax gap was the focus of a special report to Congress in 2011 and continues to be an area of focus today.
Companies such as Uber and Instacart stand to save a ton of money on labor costs — up to 40 percent, according to one study — by continuing to classify
their workers as independent contractors rather than as employees.
But when you have a legitimate basis for classifying
a worker as an independent contractor, go ahead.
One significant modification with serious repercussions for employers, ranging from onerous fines to criminal prosecution, deals with the misclassification of
a worker as an independent contractor rather than an employee.
Make sure you properly classify
your worker as an independent contractor and lay out a few of the key factors that point to a contractor relationship (behavioral factors and scope of control, for example) in writing.
Not exact matches
For example, it is not uncommon for an
independent worker such
as a freelancer whose engagement period has ended to apply for unemployment insurance benefits with a state agency.
30 million people - young and old, men and women, part - time and full - time — work
as freelancers or
independent workers in America.
Ultimately, the news from Microsoft may also have a substantial side effect: forcing an increasing number of companies to take a second look to ensure they are correctly classifying temporary
workers, either
as W - 2 employees or
independent contractors.
Worker misclassification often arises from a misunderstanding on the part of employers
as to what constitutes an
independent contractor.
A California Supreme Court ruling on Monday will make it easier for
workers in the gig economy, like Uber drivers or TaskRabbit gofers, to claim they are employees
as opposed to
independent contractors.
Employers treat
independent workers as vendors that can be scaled up and down more easily based on emerging skill gaps and competitive pressures.
In fact, other research shows that 90 percent of employers already use
independent contractors to gain access to
workers with specific skills
as the need arises.
Never has the U.S. government been more interested in whether a
worker is properly classified
as an
independent contractor or W - 2 employee
as right now.
To stay out of hot water with the IRS, be sure the
workers you classify
as independent contractors meet the IRS definition of an
independent contractor.
There are 30 million Americans working
as freelancers or
independent workers.
The bottom line is this: If a
worker isn't hanging out their «shingle» to perform the same duties for others, it'll be difficult to classify that person
as an
independent contractor.
Workers who actively manage their own business where you don't exercise control over their «comings and goings» will most likely qualify
as independent contractors.
A: The IRS is most likely looking for
workers you've classified
as independent contractors.
The government contends that it loses millions, quite possibly billions, of dollars each year on
workers who've been classified
as independent contractors but who haven't voluntarily paid self - employment taxes.
Its «dashers,» otherwise known
as drivers, are
independent contractors, just like Uber and Lyft's
workers.
Regulatory changes had been in the wind for some time
as the evidence against the program built up, yet employers relied on the lobbying efforts of the Canadian Federation of
Independent Business to maintain the program rather than taking steps to improve domestic recruitment and training efforts or adjust wages and benefits to attract
workers.
That could be costly for a business if
workers it considered to be
independent contractors are later reclassified
as employees by the IRS.
Though just 3 percent of those work more than 15 hours a week
as an
independent cited the likes of Freelancer.com
as their primary source of work, «they are relatively important for young and inexperienced
independent workers, with 18 percent of Gen Y
independents» listing them
as a source of gigs and «21 percent of those who have been
independent for less than one year» relying on these marketplaces
as well.
Luxe Valet originally had its
workers as W - 2 employees, but switched early on to
independent contractors or «1099s»
as they are referred to in the industry because of the flexibility it offered the
workers.
• Include a clause that
as an
independent worker the contractor may enter into other agreements not in conflict and a confidentiality agreement.
For example, in California, certain types of delivery drivers, salespeople, and construction
workers are designated
as statutory employees, regardless of their classification
as an employee or
independent contractor and are therefore eligible for unemployment insurance.
In some cases, states should expand coverage of existing programs to include
independent contractors,
as is the case with
workers» compensation and state retirement systems.
Independent contractors at the 10th percentile in their respective
worker classification self - reported earnings
as low
as $ 4.44 per hour, 57 percent of the earnings reported by employees at the 10th percentile (see Table A1).
For instance, in 2015, the housecleaning start - up Homejoy publicly said that the four lawsuits it faced from
workers who claimed they were misclassified
as independent contractors were «the deciding factor» in the reason it shut down.
As we crafted policy in this space, we talked to worker advocates, innovative businesses, and legal experts with the goal of raising wages and standards for independent contractors broadly, providing these workers universally needed benefits as well as a say in obtaining nontraditional benefits, and ensuring that the system would be practicable for participating companie
As we crafted policy in this space, we talked to
worker advocates, innovative businesses, and legal experts with the goal of raising wages and standards for
independent contractors broadly, providing these
workers universally needed benefits
as well as a say in obtaining nontraditional benefits, and ensuring that the system would be practicable for participating companie
as well
as a say in obtaining nontraditional benefits, and ensuring that the system would be practicable for participating companie
as a say in obtaining nontraditional benefits, and ensuring that the system would be practicable for participating companies.
Meanwhile, just last month the New York State Department of Labor announced that it had awarded unemployment benefits to two Uber drivers after finding that they were actually employees rather than
independent workers,
as all drivers who use the platform to find customers are classified.
And if contract
workers lose a contract or are otherwise discriminated against on the basis of age, religion, sex, disability status, or national origin, they have little recourse.15 Moreover, discretionary company - provided benefits — such
as paid leave and retirement contributions — are not typically available to
independent contractors.