Five months ago, we reported about a class action lawsuit against an artificial intelligence (AI) company that engages workers to perform data labeling and content creation and classifies them as independent contractors (ICs)...more
6/17/2025
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
California ,
Class Action ,
Commercial Truck Drivers ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Dormant Commerce Clause ,
Employment Litigation ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Innovative Technology ,
Misclassification ,
New Jersey ,
Proposed Regulation ,
State Labor Laws ,
Trucking Industry ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Wage and Hour
Last month, the most significant legal development in the area of independent contractor (IC) compliance and misclassification was on Capitol Hill. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, a Senate Republican who chairs the Senate Health,...more
5/12/2025
/ ABC Test ,
Class Action ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Definition ,
Employees ,
Employment Litigation ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Labor Reform ,
Misclassification ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Labor Laws
The U.S. Department of Labor re-issued an Opinion Letter on the issue of independent contractor (IC) status of an on-demand virtual marketplace company (VMC) that refers end-market consumers to service providers who offer...more
5/6/2025
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Biden Administration ,
California ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employment Litigation ,
Enforcement ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
On-Demand Services ,
Online Marketplace ,
Opinion Letter ,
Service Professionals ,
Trump Administration
The New Jersey Department of Labor and Industry (the Department) announced on April 28, 2025, that it was filing a notice of a proposed regulation addressing the test for independent contractor (IC) status under New Jersey...more
5/1/2025
/ ABC Test ,
Comment Period ,
Employment Contract ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
New Jersey ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
State Labor Laws
The most significant development last month in the law of independent contractors was not one of the four cases we summarize below but rather a bill passed by the New York Senate. ...more
4/15/2025
/ Class Action ,
Employment Litigation ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Reform ,
Misclassification ,
New York ,
Penalties ,
Popular ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State Labor Laws ,
VA Supreme Court ,
Wage and Hour
Few federal regulations over the past five years have produced more needless concern by stakeholders than the independent contractor rules under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) issued by the different...more
2/12/2025
/ Civil Rights Act ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employment Litigation ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Freelance Workers ,
Gig Economy ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hostile Environment ,
Independent Contractors ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
Misclassification ,
State Labor Laws ,
Title VII ,
Wage and Hour
Class action independent contractor misclassification cases continue to be filed and most seem to settle, often for large sums, as we have reported in our blog posts on legal developments each month. But some industries have...more
Yesterday, June 13, 2023, the NLRB issued a lengthy decision in its Atlanta Opera case dealing with the applicable test for independent contractor status under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). This decision reversed...more
We reported in our October 10, 2022 blog post that Uber had agreed to pay $100 million in back unemployment taxes to the New Jersey Department of Labor for having classified drivers as independent contractors. Another state...more
Three of the five court cases of note in this monthly update involve California’s Assembly Bill 5, which has exponentially increased litigation involving independent contractor misclassification in that state. That...more
The most publicized legal development in the area of independent contractor law last month involved an opinion issued by a federal appellate court in a gig economy case that generated national attention. In a decision...more
Earlier today, the Biden Administration’s Labor Department issued a proposed regulation that seeks to define the worker classification test for independent contractor or employee status under the Fair Labor Standards Act...more
Perhaps the most significant development involving independent contractor compliance and misclassification issues in December 2021 received relatively scant attention: a detailed empirical study based on survey results of a...more
The first three cases reported below regarding legal developments in August 2021 have four common denominators: the defendants are all large gig economy companies; plaintiffs’ class action counsel is the same; the lawsuits...more
9/15/2021
/ ABC Test ,
Arbitration ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
Lyft ,
Misclassification ,
Wage and Hour
A set of bills being finalized by the New York State legislature would, if enacted, dramatically alter the landscape of laws affecting independent contractor drivers who provide services to customers of ride-sharing...more
The results are in. Voters in California don’t want their rideshare and app-based delivery services to change. By an overwhelming majority, Proposition 22 was approved by California voters. Essentially, that means that...more
The last two months have consumed all of us with matters related to COVID-19. This public health emergency has created an anomalous situation virtually no one could have foreseen: legislation being passed at the federal level...more
This past month was the first month we can recall where there were no legal developments of note involving class action independent contractor misclassification lawsuits, which have become increasingly prevalent. Instead,...more
We are often asked, what industries are impacted by independent contractor misclassification? While IC misclassification claims are most prevalent in the construction, transportation, and gig economy businesses, there are...more
There were newsworthy developments in a number of cases in the area of independent contractor misclassification during the month of October. Those cases were brought against companies in an array of different industries...more
The lawyers for GrubHub and the driver who is among thousands who sued the company for independent contractor misclassification made their closing arguments earlier today before federal Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Scott...more