There Is One Standard Independent Contractor Test
Welcome back to the blog series on the 13 Myths of Independent Contractors. Congratulations! You’ve made it to the final blog in the series!
As you know, we created this series to help you navigate some of the potential legal minefields caused by the complex legal environment surrounding independent contractors. The content from this series comes from the whitepaper: Independent Contractor Myths versus Reality.
Myth: There is one standard test in the U.S. to determine whether someone qualifies as an independent contractor.
As illustrated throughout this series of blogs, there are many federal and state statutes governing independent contractor status.
These government regulations are often complex and sometimes contradictory. Even if a worker qualifies as an independent contractor under one regulatory agency’s test, they are not automatically qualified under any other agency’s test. Organizations must take a broad view to mitigate risk.
Conclusion:
In addition to not falling victim to any of the myths shared in this whitepaper blog series, the best way to mitigate your risk of worker misclassification is to identify all the applicable tests at play. It is important to know what factors will be considered in the event a worker’s independent contractor status is scrutinized by a court or regulatory body.
It is also important to evaluate any independent contractor relationship against the strictest test possible in the applicable jurisdiction. Human resources and legal leaders want to ensure that as many factors are satisfied as possible (or all of them for cases like the ABC test, under which the factors are more like requirements).
Finally, businesses should also be mindful that the employment law landscape is dynamic, particularly around worker misclassification. Federal, state, and local regulations are constantly changing, so they may need to adjust relationships as dictated by changes to the law or attendant regulations.
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