independent contractors

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Authored by Hillary J. Massey

Seyfarth Synopsis: It remains to be seen whether the Trump administration will redirect its enforcement priorities away from independent contractor misclassification issues or curtail the applicable standards in the coming years. Because states and plaintiffs’ attorneys likely will continue to aggressively pursue independent contractor matters, employers should consider auditing their independent contractor positions to identify …
Continue Reading Independent Contractor Standards Uncertain Despite New Administration

Seyfarth Synopsis: The New York Court of Appeals recently rejected the narrow view of the Unemployment Insurance Appeal Board and found that substantial evidence did not support a finding that certain yoga instructors were misclassified as independent contractors.

Co-authored by Robert S. Whitman and Howard M. Wexler

As wage and hour “gurus” are aware, the “mantra” of most federal and…
Continue Reading New York’s Highest Court: No “Stretch” in Yogi’s Independent Contractor Classification

Co-authored by Robert Whitman and Adam J. Smiley

Seyfarth Synopsis: Fox Searchlight and Fox Entertainment Group have reached a preliminary settlement with a group of former unpaid interns, possibly resolving the lawsuit that resulted in a Second Circuit decision that redefined the test used to evaluate whether interns are properly classified under the FLSA.

As this blog has previously reported…
Continue Reading That’s a Wrap: Fox Reaches Deal with Unpaid Interns

Co-authored by Robert Whitman, Cameron Smith, and Meredith-Anne Berger

Former brokers of Fordham Financial Management will have to put this one in the “loss” column. Judge Paul Crotty of the Southern District of New York granted Fordham’s motion to decertify the FLSA collective in their lawsuit alleging they were misclassified as independent contractors.

The brokers initially succeeded in…
Continue Reading Brokers Take a Bath in FLSA Collective Action

Co-authored by Robert S. Whitman and Adam J. Smiley

As this blog revels in the newest installment of the Star Wars saga, we remind you of our previous reports (here and here) regarding an equally enthralling (to your humble bloggers, anyway) legal showdown: the legal issues swirling around the “on-demand” workforce. Lawsuits by drivers for on-demand ride services…
Continue Reading A long time ago, in an on-demand world far, far away …

Co-authored by Richard Alfred and Kevin Young

Wage and hour litigation continues to soar to record highs. So says the federal judiciary’s most recent data on cases filed in federal court over the last federal fiscal year. After hitting an all-time high of 8,160 in FY14, the annual wage and hour caseload spiked another 7.6%—to 8,781—in…

Continue Reading Another Year, Another All-Time High for Wage and Hour Litigation

Co-authored by Robert S. Whitman and Adam J. Smiley

Last week, this blog reported on the guidance from the Department of Labor (DOL) regarding the classification of independent contractors under the FLSA. The 15-page Administrator’s Interpretation (AI) seeks to restrict the use of independent contractors by reading the FLSA’s definition of “employ” as broadly as possible and by tightening the…
Continue Reading DOL Independent Contractor Guidance Targets “On-Demand” Companies

Co-authored by Richard Alfred, Alex Passantino, Patrick Bannon, and Adam Smiley

Today, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued its first Administrator’s Interpretation (AI) on the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) in more than a year. As the Administrator, Dr. David Weil, had forecast in a speech last month, today’s AI discusses the…
Continue Reading DOL Issues Guidance On Independent Contractor Classification Interpreting FLSA Broadly to Cover Most Workers as Employees

Co-authored by Robert S. Whitman and Adam J. Smiley

This blog recently reported on the first wave of lawsuits challenging the classification of independent contractors in the “on-demand” economy. The second wave has now arrived, as numerous tech companies have been hit with class or collective action lawsuits alleging misclassification of their workers, most filed by the same plaintiffs’ attorney…
Continue Reading “On-Demand” Litigation Heats Up This Summer

Co-authored by Robert S. Whitman and Howard M. Wexler

With Wimbledon in full swing, and the U.S. Open just a few weeks away, the Second Circuit awarded game, set and match to the U.S. Tennis Association in a challenge to the independent contractor status of the tournament’s umpires. In Meyer v. USTA, which we previously wrote about here,…
Continue Reading USTA Aces Misclassification Case Before Second Circuit