Tag: independent contractors

Covered Contractors Take Note of Changes in 2016

Pay transparency final rule is in effect

Executive Order 13665 (EO 13665), the Final Rule promoting pay transparency protection, took effect on January 11, 2016. The executive order covers employees and job applicants of companies with over $10,000 in federal contracts/subcontracts entered into or modified on or after January 11, 2016.

If covered by the law, employers must:

  • Disseminate the Pay Transparency Statement, as prescribed and made available by the OFCCP on its website, by either electronic posting OR by posting a copy of the provision in conspicuous places available to employees and applicants for employment; and

  • Incorporate the Pay Transparency Statement into existing employee manuals or handbooks; and

  • Update your equal employment opportunity clause in covered federal contracts/subcontracts and purchase orders to include a prohibition from discharging, or in any manner discriminating against any employee or applicant for employment because the employee or applicant inquired about, discussed, or disclosed the compensation of the employee or applicant or another employee or applicant. If you are currently only incorporating the nondiscrimination obligation by reference to 41 CFR 60-1.4, you may continue to do so.

It is important to note that the pay transparency nondiscrimination provision is required to be posted in addition to the required “EEO is the Law” posting. Once the “EEO is the Law” poster is updated to reflect the new pay transparency nondiscrimination provision, it will be made available on the OFCCP’s and EEOC’s website. In the meantime, however, you can place the supplement to the “EEO is the Law” poster alongside the “EEO is the Law” poster. You can find the supplement on the OFCCP’s website.

Minimum wage increases for covered contractors

Effective as of January 1, 2016, the minimum wage for certain employees of covered federal contractors will increase by five cents to $10.15 per hour, and the minimum cash wage for tipped employees working on or in connection with covered federal contracts will increase to $5.85 per hour.

Covered contracts include those contracts resulting from solicitation issues on or after January 1, 2015, and contracts awarded outside of the solicitation process on or after January 1, 2015. Significantly, not all federal contractors are subject to this new requirement. As a practical matter, most “supply” contractors, or those providing goods (and not services) to the federal government should not be covered by this new Executive Order.

Article By Margaret R. Kurlinski & Deborah  Rehorst of Godfrey & Kahn S.C.

Copyright © 2015 Godfrey & Kahn S.C.

Uber Argues That Its Drivers Are Not Employees

In a case pending in California federal court, Uber is arguing that its drivers are not employees. O’Connor et al. v. Uber Technologies, Inc. et al., No. 3:13-cv-03826 (N.D. Cal. filed Aug. 16, 2013). Uber drivers have sued the company in a putative class action that alleges that they were short-changed because they received only a portion of the 20 percent gratuity paid by passengers.

In response, Uber recently filed a motion for summary judgment that argued that its drivers are not employees because they do not provide services to Uber. Rather, Uber provides a service to its drivers, because drivers pay for access to “leads,” or potential passengers, through the Uber application, and therefore, like passengers, drivers are customers who receive a service from the company. Uber also argued that even if drivers are deemed to provide services to Uber, they do so as independent contractors, not employees. This is because, Uber contends, the company provides drivers with a lead generation service but does not control the manner or means of how they work, and therefore, Uber is in a commercial rather than an employment relationship with its drivers.

This is not the first and likely not the last of Uber’s legal troubles in California. Passengers have also filed a proposed class action over the 20 percent gratuity, and last week, San Francisco and Los Angeles District Attorneys have hit Uber with a consumer safety suit over how it screens its drivers. There will surely be more to come as we watch what happens with Uber in California.

ARTICLE BY

Rachel T. Segal
OF
Barnes & Thornburg LLP

It Depends: The Top 3 Inherently Gray Areas of Employment Law

Barnes Thornburg

Fact-specific.

 Case by case.

 These are just two of the terms that stand for one of the frustrating (for employers) truths of many areas of employment law:  there are few black and white answers. There are endless shades of gray, and in honor of this week’s letter of the law (G), we recognize three common gray areas and some specific questions that must be asked when addressing situations under each. The fact that there are so many questions that need to be answered under each explains why they are gray areas!

The Letter G

1. Is a noncompete agreement enforceable?

  • What duties did the employee perform for the previous employer?

  • What duties is the employee performing for the new employer?

  • Did the employee engage in any underhanded behavior while still employed by the previous employer (such as copying confidential documents)?

  • What have been the previous employer’s practices and track record in enforcing noncompetes in the past?

  • What state’s law does the agreement say will apply?

  • What state is the employee located in now?

  • Does the contract specify where any disputes must be litigated?

2. Does an employer have to provide a particular reasonable accommodation under the disability discrimination laws?

  • What efforts have been made to communicate with the employee about the situation?

  • Has the employee been cooperative in responding to inquiries?

  • Do you have a medical assessment of the employee’s ability to perform his/her job?

  • Do you trust that assessment (or do we think the physician’s assistant filled it out the way the employer wanted him/her to)?

  • How unique are the employee’s job duties?

  • What are the job duties?

  • Which job duties do you thing are not being adequately performed?

  • Do you question the employee’s efforts in attempting to work, or do you think the employee is to any degree malingering?

3. Is a worker an independent contractor or an employee?

  • Is there any written agreement with the worker?

  • Are there are other workers performing the same or similar tasks, and are they considered employees or contractors?

  • How much direction is the worker receiving from the company on the details of performing tasks?

  • Does the worker provide services for other companies?

  • Is the worker full time or close to it for your company?

  • Does the worker provide any or all of the tools need to perform his/her work?

  • How long has the worker been working for your company?

These issues are like snowflakes. With so many questions (and these are not intended to be exhaustive lists), no two sets of answers will be exactly alike. That can be frustrating, because it is easier to administer rules with clearer thresholds: Two weeks of vacation. No flip flops at work. The work day is 8:30 to 5:00 with a half hour lunch break at noon. Those rules are usually pretty easy. Like it or not, though, what employment lawyers and employers spend most of their time on are the snowflakes, and carefully working through the situations to manage them as cost-effectively as possible.

What gray areas are you spending your time on this week?

ARTICLE BY

William A. Nolan
 
OF
Barnes & Thornburg LLP