Tag Archives: Subcontractor Agreement

10.14.24
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Blending In: California Passes Freelancer Protection Law, Joining Other Locales

Don’t tell anyone, but there is a motorcycle toward the front of this photo. I know, it blends right in and is hard to see because it’s camouflaged. But look carefully and you’ll see it.

I saw it recently while in Bellagio on our vacation to Italy. Yes, I have better photos, but this one helps me make a point about blending in.

The California legislature has decided to blend in too, adopting a freelancer protection bill that is similar to laws already in place in New York State, Illinois, and several cities.

California’s Freelance Worker Protection Act takes effect 1/1/2025.

The law has no bearing on the determination of whether someone is an employee or independent contractor. But if the worker is a contractor and other criteria are met, then the requirements of the law must be followed by the party retaining the independent contractor.

If you’ll be retaining a freelancer in California, here’s what you need to know. As a reward for reading to the end, I’ve included some tips and a better photo.

Applies if:

  • Retention of individual IC or single member entity,
  • Retained to provide “professional services” (as defined in Labor Code sec 2778), and
  • $250 in services to be provided within 120 days

But not applicable if:

  • The hiring party is an individual and the work is for the hiring party’s personal benefit or benefit of the family (e.g., n/a to babysitter, dog walker)

Requirements:

  • Written contact that includes:
    • Name and address of each party
    • Itemized list of services and value
    • Rate and method of compensation
    • Date when payment is due or mechanism for determining when payment is due
    • Date when IC must submit invoice to allow for timely payment
  • Payment to IC is due on the date specified in contract or, if no date is specified, then 30 days after work is completed
  • Once work is completed, hiring party cannot require freelancer (a) to accept less in payment, (b) to provide more goods or services, or (c) to grant more IP rights than agreed to in the contract

Other provisions:

  • The law does not limit existing contract law or prevent an IC from enforcing a verbal contract or recovering under promissory estoppel
  • Waivers are void
  • Retaliation prohibited
  • Civil action permitted; recovery to include attorneys fees and costs
  • Damages:
    • If IC requested and was denied a written contract, then additional $1000
    • If hiring party failed to timely pay, then 2x unpaid portion
    • Damages equal to value of contract for other violations
  • Hiring party must provide IC with a copy of the contract
  • Hiring party must retain contract for 4 years

Tips:

  • Clarify intellectual property rights in contract; don’t leave that until later or assume there is a handshake understanding of who will own the IP
  • Specify a due date for payment or a process for determining when payment is due
  • Define when the work is completed, and define it in a way that requires specifications to be met. This is to protect against poor workmanship and to try to preserve the right to pay less for a shoddy output.

And here’s a more representative photo from the Italy vacation. This is at Alpe di Suise in the Dolomites.

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© 2024 Todd Lebowitz, posted on WhoIsMyEmployee.com, Exploring Issues of Independent Contractor Misclassification and Joint Employment. All rights reserved.

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03.04.24
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Don’t Horse Around: Here Are Three Agreements You Should Have on Your Shelf

Police in Wejherowo, Poland arrested a 19-year-old man for stealing a horse. The man was caught after neighbors reported that he was trying to lead a horse up the stairs to his third floor apartment.

Why would someone do that? Apparently he was trying to conceal the horse and thought his apartment would make a good hiding place. (After all, who would look in a third-floor walk up for a missing horse?) But getting the horse to the apartment was the man’s undoing.

He didn’t think through his plan. Don’t be like that man. Today’s post is to help you think through your plan in advance, but in the context of retaining non-employee labor, not stealing a horse.

I generally recommend having three types of agreements in your stable of documents. (Heh heh, see what I did there?) Each serves a different purpose and contains different features, even though there is often some overlap.

1. Independent Contractor Agreement. This should be crafted for use with solo independent contractors (1099s), regardless of whether there’s a single member LLC or a sole proprietorship.

The goal here is limit the risk of misclassification, that is, a finding that the worker is really your employee.

The agreement should identify and memorialize the facts that support IC status, such as that the company retains no right to control how the work is done, where it’s done, when it’s done, steps, sequence, etc.

If there are lots of ICs doing the same thing, individual arbitration agreements with class waivers can be highly useful to include too, as they reduce the downside risk of misclassification.

2. Vendor Outsourcing Agreement. This document is for when a function is entirely outsourced, such as in the hospitality industry, where it is common to outsource the housekeeping function.

There are two goals here.

One goal is to memorialize the facts that will help avoid a finding of joint employment. These workers should be managed independently of your company’s employees and should not be directly supervised by your managers.

The second goal is make it difficult for a disgruntled worker of the vendor to allege joint employment, and there are various tools in the toolbox to help accomplish this objective.

3. Staffing Services Agreement. This document is to be used when a third party provides staff augmentation services or other workers who are commingled with your employees or supervised by your managers. In this scenario, there’s a reasonable risk of joint employment.

We want to use the contract to build defenses.

First, we want to lay the groundwork for a claim against the vendor if the vendor fails to pay its employees in accordance with the law.

Second, we want to throw obstacles in the way of anyone who might want to bring a joint employment claim. Individual arbitration agreements with class waivers are helpful in that regard.

If you’re working with a staffing agency, the form they provide you is not likely to help limit your legal risks. It’s always better to start with your own form.

Don’t Horse Around

Agreements provided by your vendors are unlikely to provide you with any meaningful protections. Different agreements have different purposes, and these three agreements should each be used in different situations.

It doesn’t work to use a staffing agreement with outsourced employees, and it doesn’t work to use an independent contractor agreement with outsourced labor employed by the vendor. Those workers aren’t independent contractors at all; they’re employees of the vendor. The legal risk you’re trying to address is whether you’re a joint employer. That’s a very different legal question than whether the worker is misclassified.

So be sure to use the right kind of agreement for the right kind of situation.

That means planing ahead and having the right forms on hand, ready to go. As our friend in Wejherowo learned the hard way, you’ve got think all the way through your plan in advance.

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© 2024 Todd Lebowitz, posted on WhoIsMyEmployee.com, Exploring Issues of Independent Contractor Misclassification and Joint Employment. All rights reserved.

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07.17.23
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Free Lancers? Fourth Major US City Now Requires Written Contracts for Freelance Workers

In ancient and medieval warfare, cavalrymen who fought battles with lances were known as lancers. Actually, they were probably known as whatever Assyrians or Normans or Persians called lancers in their languages, but that’s not important right now.

I should share that my junior high, Palmetto, was also known as the Lancers when I attended in the 1980s. I don’t know if they are still the Lancers, but I do know that they are no longer Palmetto Junior High. Instead, the school is now known as Palmetto Middle School, which is unfortunate and a bit cruel to the teenage cheerleaders who must wear the school’s initials across their chests.

Medieval lancers might have been paid, or might not. Don’t know, don’t care. I know that PMS Lancers are not paid. But this post is not about free lancers. It’s about freelancers. And that space makes a lot of difference.

Los Angeles is the latest major city to pass an ordinance that imposes several strict requirements when retaining freelancers. The Freelance Worker Protection Ordinance took effect July 1, and L.A. now joins NYC, Seattle, and Minneapolis as cities that require a written contract when retaining a solo independent contractor.

This L.A. law is not a TV drama where “office politics and romance often distract the legal staffers from matters in the courtroom.” No, this L.A. law is more boring. This law applies when retaining a solo contractor who will earn $600 or more in a calendar year. If that’s the case (see what I did there?), then these rules now apply:

  • Must have a written contract that includes:
    • name, mailing address, phone, email of both hiring party and freelance worker,
    • itemization of services to be provided,
    • rate and method of compensation, and
    • date by which payment is due, or manner for determining due date.
  • Payment must be made by the due date or, if none is specified, within 30 days after services are rendered.
  • Both the hiring party and freelancer must retain records for 4 years.
  • Any waiver of these requirements is unenforceable.

The NYC, Seattle, and Minneapolis ordinances also require written contracts with similar contents when retaining solo independent contractors who will earn about the same amount. The NYC law applies to work worth $800 in one project or in the aggregate over 120 days. The Minneapolis law applies to work valued at $600 in a calendar year or $200 in a single week. The Seattle law applies to work valued at $600 in a calendar year.

Businesses and individuals who retain solo independent contractors in these cities need to be aware of these laws, which apply even if the hiring party is located elsewhere.

Hiring parties who fail to comply may be liable for double damages, fines for not providing a written contract, penalties for late payments, and attorneys’ fees. The most egregious violators may also be subjected to cavalry charges and lance attacks. Maybe.

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© 2023 Todd Lebowitz, posted on WhoIsMyEmployee.com, Exploring Issues of Independent Contractor Misclassification and Joint Employment. All rights reserved.

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05.16.22
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Here’s a Bizarre Lawsuit, Plus Tips for Avoiding Misappropriation Trade Secrets

A couple in Uttarakhan, India, has sued their 35-year old son for $650,000 on the grounds that he failed to provide them a grandchild. The monetary claim reflects the amount they supposedly invested in him over the years, apparently viewing him as some sort of horse stud when they paid for his education and wedding.

Their petition explains, “We killed our dreams to raise him” and “despite all our efforts, my son and his wife have caused mental torture by not giving us a grandchild.”

In the business world it seems more reasonable to demand a return on your investment in someone. But that has limits too.

Last week in Virginia, a jury awarded $2 billion to a software company for misappropriation of trade secrets, finding that a rival had paid a disloyal employee of the victim company to steal trade secrets and pass them along. Investing in someone to steal trade secrets is not kosher. Unlike the “no grandbabies” case, that seems like solid ground for a lawsuit.

While the theft of trade secrets appeared intentional here, it’s possible to acquire a rival’s confidential information unintentionally too. The risk may be especially high when you’re retaining an independent contractor who has expertise in an industry and who has likely worked for various competitors in the same space.

When retaining independent contractors, businesses should take steps to ensure they are not going to be acquiring confidential or trade secret information from the contractor.

Here’s an easy tip to help protect your company from inadvertently acquiring confidential or trade secret information from a competitor: Include in your independent contractor agreement a clause that prohibits the contractor from using any confidential or trade secret information from any past client or employer. Prohibit the contractor from incorporating any such information into any work that the contractor creates for your business.

The same type of clause can be inserted into your employment agreements.

While intentionally stealing a rival’s trade secrets is obviously a no-no, an accidental taking or an accidental incorporation of such information into your software or other systems can also create liability. Taking a clear stand that you prohibit that sort of thing will help avoid a problem later. And, if something bad does occur (assuming you didn’t solicit the improper disclosure), you’ll be in a much better place to defend against a misappropriation claim.

As for the Uttarakhan man and his wife, I don’t know what the best defense is to that sort of claim. But I do know the next family get-together is likely to be a bit uncomfortable.

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© 2022 Todd Lebowitz, posted on WhoIsMyEmployee.com, Exploring Issues of Independent Contractor Misclassification and Joint Employment. All rights reserved.

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10.28.19
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California’s New Anti-Arbitration Law: A Hotbed of Problems

California continues to be a hotbed of activity, which got me wondering: what is a hotbed? So I looked it up.

Hotbed – noun – hot·bed |  \ ˈhät-ˌbed

/a bed of soil enclosed in glass, heated especially by fermenting manure, and used for forcing or for raising seedlings/

And now you can decide which is more useful- knowing what a hotbed is or keeping up with the latest legislation in California that makes things harder for businesses.

The latest is AB51, which bans mandatory employee arbitration agreements if they are made a condition of employment. Voluntary arbitration agreements are still permitted.

So let’s just include an opt-out provision, right? That way there’s a choice, so it’s not mandatory. That would seem to make sense. Not so fast. The law says that if you include an opt-out provision, it still counts as mandatory. Huh? That’s contrary to the meaning of opt-out.

Opt – verb \ ˈäpt

/to make a choice/

If the option to opt-in is voluntary, then the option to opt-out is voluntary. Grammarians needed in California please.

The law is also probably illegal, except maybe for jobs in the transportation industry. According to the Supreme Court, the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) prohibits states from enacting laws that treat agreements to arbitrate differently than other agreements. If the parties agree to arbitrate, there’s an enforceable contract, and the states need to get out of the way. That’s a bit of an oversimplification, but not by much. The FAA doesn’t apply to portions of the interstate transportation industry though, so the California law might be enforceable only as to that small segment of jobs. The enforceability of this law will be tested in the courts.

The law also creates a chicken-and-egg problem for independent contractor misclassification disputes. You can still require in an independent contractor agreement that an independent contractor must arbitrate disputes. And in that arbitration agreement, you can grant the arbitrator the authority to rule on any questions about enforceability of the arbitration agreement.

But what if the dispute is over whether the independent contractor is an employee? If the California law stands, then the agreement to arbitrate the dispute is enforceable only if the arbitrator rules that the contractor is properly classified as a contractor, but the agreement to arbitrate is unenforceable if the arbitrator rules that the contractor is misclassified and should really be an employee. But if the arbitrator rules that contractor was really an employee, then under California law the agreement granting the arbitrator the right to make that decision is void. You’d have to decide the ultimate issue — independent contractor s employee — before determining who decides whether the worker is a contractor or an employee.

Is your head spinning? Good. Just in time for Halloween.

Thanks California. You give me lots to write about.

This new law applies to employee arbitration agreements entered into after January 1, 2020– unless it’s not enforceable at all. We’ll see.

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© 2019 Todd Lebowitz, posted on WhoIsMyEmployee.com, Exploring Issues of Independent Contractor Misclassification and Joint Employment. All rights reserved.

Need training on avoiding independent contractor misclassification claims? Hey, I do that!  

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02.11.19
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Can You Be at Fault if Your Subcontractor Performs Shoddy Installation Work? Ask a North Dakotan.

Interstate 94 in North Dakota near Gladstone

Interstate 94 in North Dakota, near Gladstone, demonstrating why ND is the least visited of the 50 states. Photo from Wikipedia.

According to the official tourism website for North Dakota, the Peace Garden State “leads the nation in production of spring wheat, durum wheat, dry edible peas, dry edible beans, honey, flaxseed and canola.” North Dakota is also the #1 producer of honey in the U.S., a fact you can learn more about by clicking on this official North Dakota State Bee Map, on which you can locate the most active apriaries, which is a place where bees are kept and which is a word that I did not know was a word, so you see, we have all learned something today.

In addition to giving us more dry edible beans than any one of us could safely consume, North Dakota also gives us a recent case that reminds us of an important principle: If your company contracts to perform a service and subcontracts the service, your company is probably still liable under contract law to ensure that the service is properly performed.

In Bakke v. Magi-Touch Carpet, the Supreme Court of North Dakota examined a case where Magi-Touch subcontracted the installation of a shower door, which later “imploded,” according to the narrative in the opinion. I envision something less dramatic than the implosion of the Georgia Dome (cool video), but nonetheless if it were my shower door, I’d be unhappy with that sort of installation job.

The subcontractor apparently stunk it up (too many dry edible beans?), and the homeowner sued Magi-Touch for negligence, fraud, breach of contract, and bunch of other stuff that its creative attorney could come up with. The Court ruled that this was a basic breach of contract case, not a tort case and not a negligence case. Magi-Touch had an obligation to ensure the proper installation of the door, since that what it had contracted to do. Retaining a subcontractor did not relieve Magi-Touch of its contractual obligation to install the door, and Magi-Touch could be held liable under a breach of contract theory for failing to complete the installation in a workmanlike manner.

On the bright side for Magi-Touch, it could not be held liable for negligence or other tort claims. Any damages were limited to the type of damages available for a breach of contract — namely, what it could take to repair and properly install the door.

While this may seem like an obscure shower door case from a state you’ll never visit, the principles of law discussed in the case apply fairly universally. The N.D. Supreme Court decided this case based on common law principles, which generally apply no matter where in the U.S. you are located.

The important thing to remember is that subcontracting a service that your company has contractually agreed to perform does not relieve your company of the contractual obligation to perform the service. Subcontract at your own risk, and take steps to ensure the work is properly performed before paying the subcontractor.

Be sure your contracts are clear as to whose obligations are whose — both in your contracts with customers and in your contracts with subcontractors.

And if you ever find yourself planning a trip to North Dakota, aim for September in Grand Forks and prepare to witness greatness. According to the N.D. Tourism site, “The world’s largest french fry feed is held every year in Grand Forks, during Potato Bowl USA. A new record was set on September 10, 2015, when 5,220 pounds of french fries were served.” Sounds healthy but delicious.

For more information on joint employment, gig economy issues, and other labor and employment developments to watch in 2019, join me in Philadelphia on Feb. 26 or Chicago on Mar. 21 for the 2019 BakerHostetler Master Class on Labor Relations and Employment Law: Meeting Today’s Challenges. Advance registration is required. Please email me if you plan to attend, tlebowitz@bakerlaw.com. If you list my name in your RSVP, I will have your registration fee waived.

© 2019 Todd Lebowitz, posted on WhoIsMyEmployee.com, Exploring Issues of Independent Contractor Misclassification and Joint Employment. All rights reserved.

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09.21.17
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Subcontractors Can Be Jointly Liable for Contractors’ Labor Law Violations

Otter: “He can’t do that to our pledges.”

Boon: “Only we can do that to our pledges.”

–Animal House, 1978

Subcontractors are like pledges in a way. They have to abide by the rules that apply to the primary contractor. If they fail to do so, they are responsible. Fairness isn’t really the issue.

A recent case shows how subcontractors can be held responsible when a primary contractor improperly fails to bargain with a union. In 2014, a contractor won a bid to take over a Job Corps Youth Training Center. The Center had been a union facility, and the contract was set to expire right around the same time the contractor took over operations. The contractor brought in a subcontractor, MJLM, to handle wellness, recreation,

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09.11.17
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Irma, Harvey and Force Majeure Clauses: What Does It All Mean?

What is Force majeure hurricane legal law irma harvey contracts IMG_1108Your contracts with staffing agencies and consultants probably include a bunch of legalese boilerplate mumbo jumbo at the end, which no one ever reads. One of those standard clauses is a “force majeure” clause. That’s French for “Skim over this clause.”

Companies affected by Irma and Harvey, however, may have good reason to check their contracts for these clauses. “Force majeure” means, literally, superior force.

These clauses typically say that So-and-so is excused from performing under the contract in the event of uncontrollable circumstances, such as war, terrorism, hurricanes, voodoo curses, other Acts of God, or anything caused by Pedro Cerrano and Joboo’s Cult (Major League) [Ed. Note: “Hats for Bats!”].

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08.28.17
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Tip for Master Services Agreements: Protect Your Business Opportunities

Master servbice agreement protect business opportunities non-circumvention clause staffing agency agreement IMG_1095If you google “Quotes about Opportunity,” you’ll find 1273 quotes on Goodreads.com. Everyone’s interested in opportunities. But when it comes to business relationships, don’t let others take yours.

When servicing a customer, businesses often call upon use subcontractors for help. That can be a win-win, so long as the subcontractor does not try to poach the relationship once that deal is done.

Consider protecting the opportunities you present to subcontractors with a non-circumvention clause. The concept here is that when your business has introduced a subcontractor to a customer to work on a project, the subcontractor should not be Continue reading →

08.21.17
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Michael Jackson Says: Be Sure Your Subcontractor Agreements Require Adequate Insurance

Insuracne subcointractor agreement independent contractor clauses agreements IMG_1096The Michael Jackson song, “Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough” has all kinds of lyrics I can’t understand. No matter how many times I listen to that song, most of it sounds unclear to me, like nonsense syllables.

The one part of the song that is clear, though, is the title. That one phrase is repeated over and over. Leaving aside (for now) the unintelligible parts of the song, the King of Pop unwittingly provided a good lesson on insurance clauses for subcontractor agreements.

(Note to readers: I looked up the real lyrics, and they have nothing to do with subcontractor agreements or insurance clauses, but they might as well since I still can’t understand them.)

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