If you’re a frequent online shopper and reading this post from Japan, you’re probably familiar with the online Japanese flea market app Mercari. What I mean is, I never heard of it either.
Mercari, though, made big news last month when it took the controversial step of banning the sale of prenatal photos on its website. Why would anyone buy someone else’s prenatal photo? For scamming purposes, apparently. And that’s what led Mercari to take action.
The practice of “ninshin sagi” (a phrase that autocorrect vehemently tried to reject) means pregnancy fraud. It occurs when a woman tries to blackmail a male partner into paying money for a supposed pregnancy or to get an abortion. Mercari wants no part in the scheme, so if you want to buy photos of someone else’s uterus, you’ll have to look elsewhere.
New Jersey lawmakers are also saying to look elsewhere, but their ire is aimed at the NJ Department of Labor. As we discussed here, the NJ DOL issued a proposed rule that would change the state’s test for determining independent contractor status. The public comment period for the rule has closed, and now the NJ DOL needs to consider each comment and decide what to do.
Several NJ lawmakers, however, are urging the DOL to back off, and the sentiment is bipartisan. The proposed rule, they say, is not consistent with the current state of NJ court decisions or the NJ statute. (I agree!)
There is no timetable for the NJ DOL to issue a final rule. Or the NJ DOL may abandon its effort to adopt the rule. It’s also possible that lawmakers would enact legislation to block the proposed rule.
Companies with independent contractors in NJ should keep an eye on what happens here. The proposed rule would make NJ’s current ABC Test much stricter and harder to meet, thereby making it very difficult to maintain independent contractor status in NJ.
But at least in New Jersey you can still buy online uterus pics.
© 2025 Todd Lebowitz, posted on WhoIsMyEmployee.com, Exploring Issues of Independent Contractor Misclassification and Joint Employment. All rights reserved.
