It’s been a bumpy road for the federal rules on independent contractor status under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
In the courts, the test has always focused on the “economic reality” of the relationship between a worker and the entity that benefits from the services provided to determine whether the worker is an employee or
We’re 50 days into the Biden administration. Here’s an update on where things stand with respect to wage and hour law at the federal level:
In this episode of The Proskauer Brief, partners Harris Mufson and Allan Bloom discuss the U.S. Department of Labor’s proposed new rule on independent contractor classification. In recent years, the misclassification of workers as independent contractors has been the subject of a number of private lawsuits and investigations by government agencies. This is true for traditional industries and also companies within the gig economy, which rely heavily on independent contractors. So be sure to tune in as we address how this proposed rule may impact employers’ classification of workers.
On September 13, 2019, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts granted certification of a class of independent contractor drivers who delivered packages through Dynamex Operations East for Google Express. Ouadani v. Dynamex Operations East LLC, No. 16-12036, 2019 WL 4384061 (D. Mass. Sept. 13, 2019). Ouadani, a delivery driver, sued Dynamex
Members of the House and Senate introduced companion bills on June 11, 2019 to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act to raise the minimum salary threshold for exempt executive, administrative, and professional (“EAP”) employees to north of $50,000 and to automatically update the threshold every three years.
The “Restoring Overtime Pay Act of 2019” (
In an opinion letter issued April 29, 2019, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division concluded that a “virtual marketplace company” (“VMC”) that connects service providers with consumers is not the employer of the service providers. The opinion should be a welcome one not only for VMCs and businesses in the “gig economy,”