You deserve protection on the job.
Some employers attempt to evade the Fair Labor Standards Act ( FLSA ), the National Labor Relations Act ( NLRA ) and other federal worker protections by misclassifying their employees as “independent contractors,” who are not entitled to many employee protections. An independent contractor is typically defined as someone who is not economically dependent on an employer and who is engaged in his or her own business.
Several factors are important in determining whether an employment relationship—rather than an independent contractor relationship—exists:
1) The extent to which the worker’s services are an integral part of the employer’s business;
2) The permanency of the relationship;
3) The worker’s investment in tools and equipment (i.e., if the worker owns/maintains his or her own equipment, it is more likely that the worker is an independent contractor);
4) The nature and degree of control of the worker by the employer;
5) The worker’s opportunities for profit and loss; and
6) The amount of skill, initiative, judgment and foresight required in performing the job.
More information regarding the factors that are important in determining whether an employment relationship exists may be found on the Department of Labor’s website .
Do you think you have been misclassified? Do you consider yourself an employee and not an independent contractor?
The Labor Department has launched the Misclassification Initiative to restore rights to those who have fallen victim to misclassification. States are getting involved in rectifying this growing problem. Click here to get information on certain states that are combating on misclassification and to learn more about the Labor Department’s Initiative.
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Links to additional information about employer abuses in misclassification of employees:
