A lot has been written about the Dynamex case, but not enough has been written about it using references to Led Zeppelin songs. I am here to fill the void. Here is a musically-themed update. We’re Going to California. You’re welcome.

Dazed and Confused. Last week, a gaggle of California businesses and trade associations sent a letter to Gov. Brown and the Cal. Legislature, asking for relief from the Dynamex decision and its court-created ABC Test for independent contractor misclassification claims. The letter correctly says, “With one judicial opinion, nearly 30 years of established law has been overturned virtually overnight.”

Communication Breakdown. The letter argues that any change in the standard for determining Who Is My Employee? should be made by the legislature, not the courts. The Industrial Wage Commission, which wrote the wage orders at issue in the Dynamex case, was defunded 15 years ago, before mobile apps existed and before the gig economy took off. So why is a new rule applicable to the new economy coming from a court, instead of the legislature?

When the Levee Breaks. The letter argues that the impact of the Dynamex decision may be massive, disrupting well-established industries and independent contractor relationships. The decision “hinders California as a national leader in the innovation economy.” Businesses feel Trampled Under Foot.

Babe I’m Gonna Leave You. Businesses relying on independent contractor models may leave California. This ruling makes it even more difficult to do business in the Wacky Republic.

What Is and What Should Never Be. Assuming that is a question, the answer is: The Dynamex ruling. (Another acceptable answer would have been: People who walk really slow in airports.)

Hey Hey What Can I Do. The letter asks the legislature to pass a law that eliminates the ABC Test and re-introduces a common sense balancing test like in S.G. Borello.

That’s all I have for now. But before I go, I feel compelled to give a hat tip to my favoritely (?) named Led Zeppelin song, Boogie with Stu.

© 2018 Todd Lebowitz, posted on WhoIsMyEmployee.com, Exploring Issues of Independent Contractor Misclassification and Joint Employment. All rights reserved.