The Burr Broadcast: New Independent Contractor Rule
It has been well over a year since the U.S. Department of Labor issued its proposed rule entitled “Employee or Independent Contractor Classification under the Fair Labor Standards Act.” The regulation was expressly intended...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Much has been written in the past few weeks about a recent federal court decision that invalidated the U.S. Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) joint employment rule. While the immediate reaction of some may be...more
In a recent opinion letter, the United States Department of Labor concluded that workers who use a “virtual marketplace” business – similar to Uber, DoorDash, Instacart, or Rover – are independent contractors and not...more
The Department of Labor (DOL) issued an opinion letter on April 29, 2019 that provides guidance for gig economy companies on when workers can properly be classified as independent contractors not subject to the minimum wage...more
Recently the hot topic in employment law is the widespread misclassification of employees as independent contractors. The courts and the Department of Labor (DOL) have steadily turned up the heat on employers who misclassify...more
On June 7, 2017, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced that it was withdrawing its 2015 and 2016 Administrative Interpretations regarding independent contractors and joint employment. Both interpretations were designed...more
The Department of Labor’s decision this week to rescind two of its memos from the Obama administration regarding joint employer liability may be a hint of what’s to come under the new White House. The repealed memos...more
Sweeping changes were made recently by a federal appeals court to the joint employer standard under the Fair Labor Standards Act that make it difficult for a contractor to avoid being considered a joint employer with its...more
Earlier this month in McFeeley v. Jackson Street Entertainment, LLC, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (which includes North Carolina and South Carolina) concluded that exotic dancers were employees entitled to minimum...more
If it looks like “Independent Contractor vs. Employee Week” on Labor & Employment Law Perspectives, that may be a function of the fact that misclassification of employees as independent contractors has been a hot topic for...more
If you read one thing... - The Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division issued new guidance emphasizing the broad standards it will apply to determine whether an employer is a “joint employer” under the FLSA. ...more
On January 20, 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued an Administrator Interpretation regarding what arrangements will constitute joint employment under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Under the FLSA, when an...more
The position could expose more putative employers to potential liability under the Fair Labor Standards Act. In an Administrator’s Interpretation (AI) issued on January 20, the US Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) Wage and...more
On January 20, 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage & Hour Division (WHD) issued another Administrator’s Interpretation (the AI or “Guidance”) that it hopes will have a far-ranging impact on how employers do business...more
Perhaps it is the end of racing season in Saratoga, but the federal employment agencies are certainly looking to hit the trifecta against independent contractors, franchisors, parent companies, and similar entities under the...more
With the prevalence of companies providing ‘‘on demand’’ services today, the temptation to classify workers as independent contractors rather than employees has perhaps never been greater, attorneys Keith Covington and John...more
Last month, the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) issued an Administrator's Interpretation aimed at addressing what it characterizes as the “problematic trend” of employers misclassifying workers as independent contractors...more
On July 15, 2015, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued an “Administrator’s Interpretation” (AI 2015-1) providing guidance on whether workers are employees or independent contractors under the Fair Labor Standards Act...more
The Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued new guidance addressing independent contractor classification under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). In Administrator’s Interpretation No. 2015-1, the DOL interprets the...more
When I talk to businesspeople about the legal differences between employees and independent contractors, I often offer the electrician who comes to the office to fix a wiring problem as the paradigmatic independent...more
California Sick Leave Law Gets Updates - Why it matters: California's Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act just took effect on July 1 but Governor Jerry Brown has already signed into law tweaks to the statute....more
Businesses operating in or expanding to the US, including those from Ireland and Northern Ireland, use independent contractors to avoid some of the baggage associated with the employer/employee relationship under US law. The...more
Most workers should be classified as employees, and not independent contractors, and be paid minimum wage and overtime pay, the U.S. Department of Labor said in an Administrator’s Interpretation issued July 15. The...more
The United States Department of Labor (DOL) has fired a new salvo in its war on worker misclassification in the form of Administrator's Interpretation 2015-1, which challenges the widespread employer practice of declaring the...more
On July 15, 2015, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued an Administrator’s Interpretation (No. 2015-1) providing guidance on the classification of employees as independent contractors under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)....more