http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx If you're like me, you've probably been bombarded by more independent contractor news than you brain can handle..make that, wants to handle. Yes, independent contractor misclassification news has hit the print media, the airwaves, specific industry websites, the blogosphere and the local community bulletin board. Heck, it's even infiltrated Youtube. Youtube? You betcha. Everywhere you read, someone has an opinion on the the whole independent contractor misclassification topic, including yours tr... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=8168765726661496010 So I'm in middle of this long line that's moving at a decent pace. From what I can see, a very distinguised looking gentleman at the front of the line appears to be handing out money. The line moves faster and before I know it, it's my turn at the front. I look at the gentleman's face and it's none other than President Obama wearing one of those tuxedo t-shirts. He notices that I'm staring and blurts out "it's formal but I want everyone to know that I still like to party." What? Before I can res... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=4920062046793093761 On December 15th, Senator John Kerry picked up where he left off in 2008 when he sponsored S. 2882, the Taxpayer Responsibility, Accountability, and Consistency Act of 2009. The new legislation is aimed at amending the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, which would make it more difficult and costly to misclassify workers as independent contractors. Senator Kerry's latest bill sponsorship should come as no surprise since he was a co-sponsor in 2008 on S. 3648, the Employee Mislcassification and Preve... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=6140492756710923304 A few weeks ago a settlement of courier worker misclassifcation lawsuit came through the newswire so I readied my pen....er keyboard for what I thought was surely going to be another Fedex ripping. Let me start by saying that I'm not some Fedex hater. They're just an easy misclassification target that provides good fodder for discussion. That being said, I was shocked to read that the courier in brown was the one opening up it's pocketbook.On December 4th a federal judge approved a $12.8 million... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=6349190486064987116 With worker misclassification issues at the forefront and landmark cases paving the way for added legislation, fines and penalties for improperly classifying workers, it’s surprising that intelligent business leaders still believe they can simply wish away federal or state audits. And it’s alarming that many businesses are still operating without solid processes in place to ensure compliance when engaging 1099 independent contractors. Given the extreme tax liability of engaging 1099 workers, bus... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=104710065720958154 About a month ago in the SFGate (San Francisco Chronicle) a blog post seemed to conjure up some heated emotions on my favorite topic, worker misclassification. It all started with a response to a blog that ran in the Wall Street Journal, which in turn the SFGate published: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/gettowork/detail?entry_id=50533. I'll admit that when I first started reading the comments, I got all geeked up that people were so passionate about worker misclassification as much as I and... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=8948025719402616288 Tonight is my first meeting and the room is abuzz. The chairs in the room are arranged in a circle. A table near the door offers participants donuts and coffee. I've arrived just in time to hear a voice ask everyone in the room to take a seat. After everyone is seated, we begin to go around the room, one by one, stating our names and why we're here. It's my turn now. I get up and say, "Hi, my name is Aaron". The group responds with a "Hi Aaron!" I continue by saying, "I'm here because I'm a misc... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=3796551370818381761 You're driving to work on the freeway and all of a sudden you hit traffic. You can see some flashing light activity in the distance and you become a little annoyed that the traffic mess you're sitting in is a result of so called rubberneckers. Well my friends, I am a rubbernecker. Now before you blame me for all traffic related messes on the way to work today, let me clarify by saying that I'm not a traffic rubbernecker. What I am is a FedEx rubbernecker. What? Well let me explain.I've been maki... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=5436573579757062231 Last week, Tennessee's Attorney General filed a lawsuit against four staffing agencies for their wrongdoings. The staffing agencies promised workers jobs at extraordinary pay rates, career development, job placement services and perhaps the worst of the them all, charging an up-front fee. Just today, the Minnesota Attorney General filed a lawsuit against a staffing agency for fraud and deceptive business practices of which also included false job openings, advanced interview training(which never... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=5312335698933867678 Allstate has settled an age discrimination lawsuit that has been going on since 2004. The lawsuit stems from Allstate's actions in 2000 in which the company was attempting to convert is 15,000 employees to independent contractor status. Allstate settled for a sum of $4.5 million to be paid to 90 employees who were part of the discrimination lawsuit.It's going to get interesting. For the last few months, the Allstate agents have been clamoring for someone,...anyone to review their worker status. ... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=4036435559419498792 Whenever you hear the words worker misclassification, what comes to mind? Microsoft, Fedex, Nationwide? These names are just a few that have made national headlines. Most people assume that worker misclassification takes place within big companies or specific industries. What people don't realize is that worker misclassification can happen just about anywhere.Imagine a room that is dimly lit. A handful of attractive women are parading around divulging Victoria's secret. Just then, music starts p... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=2394580843784767737 Ahh Labor Day! A day that's often spent camping, frolicking in the water, bbq'ing, gathering with friends or all of the above. For most people, Labor Day is a day when performing labor takes a back seat to everything else. As I join the thousands of other Americans on this day, I can't help but wonder if Peter J. McGuire would have considered a creating a Labor Day in this day and age. McGuire was a carpenter/labor union leader who proposed the Labor Day concept to New York's Central Labor Union... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=3307814850130550075 You are invited to attend the inaugural meeting of VMS Professionals – WestVMS Professionals is a national not-for-profit association comprised of end user companies networking to discuss best practices in the acquisition and management of contingent labor. Our Mission is to network and educate with the highest professional integrity for the purpose of growing VMS Best Practices and contributing to the industry as a whole.Hosted by: Nixon Peabody Sponsor: Secure TalentWhen: Friday, September 25t... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=9215942028067319158 A familiar bill was reintroduced a few weeks ago that is aimed at putting an end to worker misclassification. The bill, H.R.3408, otherwise known as the Taxpayer Responsibility, Accountability and Consistency Act was intended to make it difficult for employers to receive protection from, what could be, a large employment tax penalty to those who incorrectly misclassify workers as an independent contractors.We first heard of a similar bill that was introduced almost two years ago by a Senator fro... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=5939100537615485211 Beginning August 1st, new Minnesota legislation will be in effect, one of which will be directed at the courier and trucking industry. The new law will define factors that need to be present in order for a worker to be deemed an independent contractor. Some of the factors explained in the legislation are: 1) worker owns or leases the equipment, 2) worker is responsible for maintenance and operating costs, 3) worker is paid for services performed, 4) worker controls the manner and means of servic... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=5057711406667341704 On Tuesday, three former employees of the Home Depot filed a class action lawsuit against the company for intentionally misclassifying workers as exempt in order to deny them overtime pay. The lawsuit, which was filed in Chicago, indicates that the Home Depot violated Illinois minimum wage law by not paying time and a half to any of its assistant managers who worked over forty hours a week.The former employees have stated that they were deprived of wages when the Home Depot required them to work... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=2768932881484343601 News from the underground! Well not entirely but it's worth noting. The IRS has announced that in November, it will be kicking off the first of 6,000 random employment tax audits that will last throughout the next three years. The number is much higher than what was initially thought.The IRS will be focusing their efforts on 1)exec pay and fringe benefits, 2)whether expense reimbursement plans qualify as accountable plans and 3) worker classification errors.What's a business to do? Well for one,... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=3345126338801437855 On Friday, a $200 million dollar lawsuit was filed in San Diego against Northwestern Mutual for allegedly denying minimum wage and overtime pay. To take it one step further, the class action lawsuit indicated that salespeople were misclassified an independent contractors when they should have been employees.To back up the misclassification claim, the lawsuit states that salespeople were required to sell Northwestern Mutual products, work more than eight hours a day/forty hours per week without o... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=2274557868638807665 Earlier this week, Colorado Governor Bill Ritter signed a bill aimed at stopping worker misclassification. HB 1310 was signed by the governor on June 2nd and the bill includes the potential for fines of up to $5,000 per employee for first time offenders and up to $25,000 for subsequent violations.The purpose of the new legislation was to curb the unfair competitive advantage that some businesses achieve when intentionally misclassifying their workers as independent contractors. Though not advert... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=3191913799960423369 A former contractor for RCN cable TV company filed a lawsuit claiming the company should have paid him for unpaid overtime, benefits and medical bills that were incurred when he suffered an on-the-job injury.The lawsuit involves more than 1,000 other cable installers who were deprived of overtime and benefits from RCN. The former contractor states that he and other contractors were performing services that were similar to other RCN employees except they were being paid by Custom Cable Concepts, ... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=2961391691351340715 Are you the head of a business unit within a company that just went through a downsize? Did you lose out on talent that was critical to your business unit's success. Chances are that as the economy starts to rebound, you'll be looking to augment your staff by bringing back some of those workers. I'm here to tell you that it would be a big mistake to bring them back as independent contractors.Many people have predicted that contract positions will be the first ones to rebound in this economy. Com... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=72902354066907170 Last Tuesday, FedEx Home claimed victory in a ruling that overturned a previous NLRB decision claiming that drivers for FedEx Home were employees not independent contractors. In a 2 to 1 ruling, a Washington federal appeals court ruled that approximately 4,000 drivers could not join a union because they are considered independent contractors not employees. The court's decision was based on the 'entrepreneurial potential' of the driver's ability to operate multiple routes, hire additional drivers... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=2359214666165872430 Talk about a shocker. On Tuesday, a Seattle jury released a verdict favoring Fedex in the latest decision in an ongoing battle regarding the wrongful misclassification of employees as independent contractors. The lawsuit, filed in 2004, involved more than 320 single route drivers who claim their worker status prevented them from obtaining overtime at time and a half. Also included in the lawsuit was the reimbursement for uniforms.The jury's decision comes as a surprise since a similar case in Ca... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=7707986921222480597 Back in December, we reported that current Allstate agents were attempting to get noticed by the IRS for their current worker status. Well, it looks like they're at it again.This time, a group of agents who were transitioned from employees to independent contractors back in 2000 have asked a federal appeals court to consider revisiting an age discrimination lawsuit that was filed after the worker transition. The former agents are arguing that the worker transition took place prior to some of the... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=8744504241244020209 Last September, we informed you that World Wrestling Entertainment(WWE) was being sued by three former wrestlers over not being offered benefits and being labeled independent contractors when they should have been employees. Unfortunately for the former wrestlers, they won't get a chance to go toe-to-toe with the WWE in court. Last Tuesday, a U.S. district court judge dismissed the case per the WWE's motion.The wrestlers now have to evaluate their next course of action. It appears that they can ... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=7974782451124861279 The Treasury Inspector General released a report last week summarizing the effects of worker misclassification and the steps the IRS has taken to combat the situation. Sadly, the report documented what some people in this industry already know: The misclassification of employees as independent contractors is a nationwide issue affecting millions of workers that continues to grow and contribute to the tax gap. When an employee is misclassified, tax revenues are not reported or paid and the burden... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=7478317742829229116 Last Monday, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley introduced his legislative agenda for 2009. Once of the items included in his agenda was on the topic of workplace fraud, i.e. worker misclassification. Though minimal details were released, the governor indicated that the industries targeted would be those where misclassification seems to be most prevalent.(I think the Governor might be referring to you, construction industry).O’Malley is just the latest governor to take a formal stand on worker mi... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=834926034607349000 2008 was a year of task forces, new legislation, lawsuits, a settlement and oh yeah..a new President Elect. To start off, the results of task forces on worker misclassification were presented to the governors of Michigan and Iowa. In both cases, the results indicated that 1) states lose out important tax revenues, 2) misclassification provides an unfair advantage to businesses who abide by the law and 3) misclassified workers are deprived of worker benefits such as workers compensation, overtime... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=2768696779807872572 If you were searching the internet for business news over the Christmas week, chances are you came across an article entitled “Deliberately Misclassified?”. The article which centered on Allstate Agents and their search for independence, mentioned that back in 2000, Allstate decided to alter their worker model by changing the status of every agent from employee to an independent contractor. Fast forward to today and those same agents who are independent contractors are trapped in a web of contro... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=5199766272043211581 Last Friday, Fedex settled a decade long lawsuit with 203 drivers that were misclassified by the company as independent contractors. The total amount of dollars Fedex has agreed to payout is in the neighborhood of $27 million. Of that total, $14.5 million will be paid to the California drivers and $12.5 million will be applied to attorney and court fees. The drivers stand to collect anywhere between $2,000 & $280,000 with the average payout being $70,000.Though Fedex has agreed to the payout... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=4158484584612209798 A new Minnesota independent contractor law will go into affect on January 1, 2009 taking aim at the construction industry and its independent contractor population. The Independent Contractor Exemption Certificate Legislation will require anyone doing business as an independent contractor to obtain an Independent Contractor Exemption Certificate from the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry. Any individuals performing construction services without an Independent Contractor Certificate Exem... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=7448626509798840255 A few weeks ago, the American public elected Barack Obama as its 44th President. During President Elect Obama’s run for the White House, he preached the word “Change”. Unfortunately, for employers, a part of that change may be directed at them. Before becoming the President Elect, Obama was instrumental in sponsoring two senate bills aimed at worker misclassification, the Independent Contractor Proper Classification Act of 2007 (S. 2044) and the Employee Misclassification Prevention Act (S. 3648... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=4129909026208142356 A couple of weeks ago, California Attorney General Jerry Brown sued three trucking companies who provide services to Los Angeles and Long Beach ports for intentionally misclassifying their truck drivers as independent contractors. The companies classified their drivers as independent contractors to get out of paying workers compensation and employee benefits. The crackdown on truck driver misclassification at these ports is a direct result of a task force created by the California Attorney Gener... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=2327076487891302633 Secure Talent recently attended the Staffing Industry Analysts Summit on Contingent Workforce Strategies. The event was geared for corporate buyers and contingent workforce managers. It focused on the information they need to know to better manage this critical component of their organization’s workforce. One of the highlights for Secure Talent was the “Speed Supplier” segment. It was a bit like speed dating… we had 60 seconds to provide an idea that was helpful to the managers that attended and... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=5055624568269173190 The FedEx case is like the energizer bunny, it just keeps going and going and going. By most counts, this is probably top of the third and will probably go way into overtime. A referee appointed by a California Superior Court Judge just awarded $14.4 million dollars to 200 drivers as a result of them being misclassified by FedEx as independent contractors vs. employees. The award is to reimburse the drivers for work related expenses e.g., uniforms, vehicle maintenance insurance, etc. You can ima... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=402590395657959351 Secure Talent is an Optimum sponsor at the upcoming Staffing Industry Analysts Contingent Workforce Summit (SIA CWS Summit) in Brooklyn New York. The two day event, held on October 28 and 29, is the premier event for buyers from all segments of the marketplace. CWS provides an excellent opportunity for buyers to gain tremendous insight on trends, analysis, products, services and players in the human capital management industry e.g., 1099 risk management, VMS, MSP, payrolling services and of cour... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=4471465649839903656 In the past 18 months we have seen an exponential increase in the actions by members of the house of representatives and the senate, yes republicans and democrats, to specifically address a seemingly ubiquitous and pervasive issue, the misclassification of employees as independent contractors. We are seeing more and more legislation at the state and federal levels imposing greater and greater penalties, fines and sanctions against employers--some knowingly misclassifying workers, some simply con... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=1469339797090915568 I recently published a whitepaper on the FedEx worker misclassification debacle. The FedEx case is arguably the most significant we have ever seen, in terms of the people and money involved. I must admit that I am surprised by the number of people that are not aware of the mess FedEx in. Most surprising is that so many do not see the similarities between FedEx and their own use of independent contractors. This is not just about drivers or packages, this is about services being performed that are... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=6197065956394400389 Pending legislation, HR 6111 is another recent example of Congress sending a huge salvo over the bow of employers who would repeatedly or willfully fail to accurately classify a worker i.e., W2 employee or 1099 independent contractor. The last couple of years are taking shape as the “Governments war on employee misclassification!” Across the country at the state level, governor’s and legislators are proposing and approving severe, some might call harsh executive orders and legislation with an al... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=7857743911015595222 A trial is set to begin on a class action lawsuit involving employee misclassification. A group of former newspaper carriers are suing Freedom Communications Inc dba The Orange County Register for multiple labor code violations that stemmed from The Orange County Register misclassifying newspaper carriers as independent contractors. Some of the violations include: failure to pay minimum wage, hourly wages and overtime wages; failure to provide meal and rest periods as well as unfair business pra... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=5681811892082384597 Starting in 2007, the construction industry has been getting hammered for intentionally misclassifying its workers as independent contractors. We’ve read that a carpenter’s union filed a lawsuit against builder DR Horton for replacing unionized workers with illegal independent contractors and paying them considerably lower wages. We’ve seen several states such as Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Illinois create legislation that includes financial penalties to companies within the construction indust... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=334545943330277192 But FedEx and the workers that are part of the class action know that it could be a billion dollars or more. So far hundreds of millions have been assessed and that only represents the one year that has been audited, 2002. Buckle your seatbelts, this has already proven to be a rough ride and the road ahead may not be any better. The IRS will be auditing additional years as well. One can only imagine the impact this case is having on FedEx e.g., morale, confidence, loyalty, trust, staff resource ... http://www.securetalent.com/NewsEvents/Blog.aspx?y=7665819226541854013