September 2013

In the Courts

• Oregon Court of Appeals concludes that some musicians performing with the Portland Columbia Symphony were independent contractors under the state’s unemployment law. In applying the state statute, the Court disagreed with the Administrative Law Judge’s decision that all of the musicians were employees. Although all

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In May 2013, both houses of the New Jersey legislature passed the Truck Operator Independent Contractor Act.  The bill (A1578), if enacted, would have created a presumption that parcel delivery and drayage truck drivers in New Jersey are employees and not independent contractors unless they can satisfy…

August 2013

In the Courts

• Car service drivers file proposed nationwide class action lawsuit against Uber Technologies, Inc., a car service company, in a California federal district court seeking a minimum of $5 million in damages.  The complaint alleges that Uber Technologies  misclassified the drivers as independent contractors, breached the

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The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) conducted an audit to evaluate whether the IRS’s SS-8 program is effectively processing worker determination requests and whether the rulings are being followed.  TIGTA released its Report last month, but little has been written on it.

Background of Form SS-8 Process

By…

July 2013

In the Courts 

• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit reverses a Florida federal district court decision granting summary judgment to a cable, internet, and digital telephone company on its technicians’ class action misclassification lawsuit brought under the overtime and minimum wage provisions of the Fair Labor

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Governor Pat Quinn (Dem.) of Illinois signed two new laws today, July 23, 2013, intended to curtail misclassification of employees as independent contractors (ICs). Both laws amend the state’s Employee Classification Act which, although its title suggests the law applies industry-wide to all employees in Illinois, is limited to…

On July 3, FedEx Ground drivers won summary judgment in their misclassification lawsuit brought against the global courier company under the Massachusetts Independent Contractor Act.  No. 11-11094 (D. Mass. 7/3/13).  Judge Richard G. Stearns of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts rejected all of FedEx Ground’s defenses,…

June 2013

In the Courts 

• Texas federal district court denies summary judgment motion of American subsidiary of Chinese oil rig company where two welders claim they were misclassified as independent contractors under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Applying the economic realities test, the court found that material issues of fact

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