Todd Lebowitz

On this blog, we will explore the various legal standards used to determine Who Is My Employee? We will examine new developments, trends, changes in the law, strategies, tips, and whatever else comes to mind.

A New Smell: Ninth Circuit Rejects ABC Test for Determining Joint Employment

By Todd Lebowitz on October 7, 2019

Where I play tennis, there’s a lake with a beach that is open all summer. Like most places in the Midwest, it closes for the season on Labor Day. The weekend after Labor Day, they open it up for everyone to bring their dogs to run around, jump off the high dive (I wish!), and sniff each other’s butts. Because dogs are not typically allowed at the lake, these dogs are unfamiliar with each other,…

Who Is My Employee?

NLRB Wants New Rule To Prevent Student Teaching Assistants From Joining Unions

By Todd Lebowitz on September 26, 2019

Summer may be over, but the National Labor Relations Board isn’t ready to put away its flip flops. It’s been a busy few months, with the NLRB releasing a number of recent decisions that change Obama-era interpretations of federal labor law. On Friday, the Board released a new proposed rule that would declare college teaching assistants to be non-employees, meaning they cannot form unions. The proposed rule would declare these graduate students to be just…

Who Is My Employee?

Need Direction After California’s New Independent Contractor Law? Download the Playbook!

By Todd Lebowitz on September 19, 2019

Sometime I forget where I park, so when I went to the airport recently, I told Siri where I left the car. Siri then punked me with this. I think it was intentional. Stupid AI. California businesses may be in need of some direction too. On September 18, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 5 into law. The law redefines the Independent Contractor vs. Employee test in California, applying an ABC Test to a broad…

Who Is My Employee?

California Businesses May Need Emotional Support Clown When New Independent Contractor Law Takes Effect

By Todd Lebowitz on September 16, 2019

An Auckland, New Zealand man sensed he was about to fired from his job in the ad industry. His employer scheduled a meeting and said he could bring someone with him for emotional support. He brought a clown. As the employer provided the man with his separation papers, the clown made balloon animals — a poodle and a unicorn — to try to lighten the mood. The clown also mimed crying as the employer…

Who Is My Employee?

Sperm Oil Legal Alert: Can You Sue under the Tax Code for Independent Contractor Misclassification?

By Todd Lebowitz on September 9, 2019

When laws are well-written, they’re really specific so everybody knows what you can and cannot do. For example, Title 21, Section 173.275(c) makes it a federal crime to use more hydrogenated sperm oil in food than necessary to accomplish the intended lubricating effect of the sperm oil. (Thanks @CrimeADay!) Some laws, on the other hand, leave room for interpretation. That’s when lawyers can get creative. A drapery hanger in Maryland filed a lawsuit alleging that…

Who Is My Employee?

Employees Say They’ve Been Robbed! NLRB Says Independent Contractor Misclassification Does NOT Violate the National Labor Relations Act

By Todd Lebowitz on September 3, 2019

Sheriff’s deputies in Washington County, Oregon, responded with guns drawn, expecting they were responding to a burglary in progress. A woman had called 911, saying that someone had broken into her house and locked themselves in the bathroom. She could hear rustling noises from behind the bathroom door, even though she knew she hadn’t allowed anyone into her home. The officers entered the home and heard it too. They demanded that the suspect come out…

Who Is My Employee?

The Monster with Three Eyes Can Help You Avoid Claims of Joint Employment

By Todd Lebowitz on August 26, 2019

Some monsters are scary. There’s Godzilla, who terrorized Tokyo and whose name in Japanese translates roughly to gorilla-whale. (Thanks, wikipedia!) There’s Frankenstein’s monster, Dracula (also Count Chocula), and the Creature from the Black Lagoon, which was filmed in terrorizingly implausible black and white 3-D. But on the other hand, some monsters are friendly and educational, like Cookie Monster, E.T., or, dare I say, Elmo. (“Kids look at these crayons… Kids look at …

Who Is My Employee?

Why Don’t Companies Offer Healthcare Benefits to Independent Contractors?

By Todd Lebowitz on August 19, 2019

https://www.buzzfeed.com/tayloraowens/funny-things-from-this-week-august-16 I found this on buzzfeed, while doing academic research for this blog post. In the business world, it’s not quite as funny when good intentions are misunderstood. Which is why companies generally can’t offer healthcare benefits to independent contractors. Even if they would like to, they can’t. Good intentions would be misunderstood, and the effect of offering healthcare coverage to independent contractors would likely be that they are turned into employees. Why? The…

Who Is My Employee?

Can Your Business Be Liable for Sexual Harassment by an Independent Contractor?

By Todd Lebowitz on August 12, 2019

Damage can come from unexpected places. Earlier this year, Brock Holt of the Boston Red Sox landed on baseball’s Injured List after his two-year old son poked him in the eye. Baseball players accept the risk of injury, but that’s not a way you’d expect to get hurt. I think you see where I’m going here. Don’t let an independent contractor become Brock Holt’s son. Yes, a business can be liable for harassment by…

Who Is My Employee?

How Do I Run a Background Check on an Independent Contractor?

By Todd Lebowitz on August 5, 2019

After the events of this past weekend, I don’t have to say anything about the risks involved in allowing dangerous people onto your premises. Before retaining an independent contractor who will have access to your business’s facilities, people, or information, it makes sense to know who you are inviting into your house. An employment-style background check is often appropriate, but there are a few important differences between background checks being run before hiring an employee…

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A New Smell: Ninth Circuit Rejects ABC Test for Determining Joint Employment

NLRB Wants New Rule To Prevent Student Teaching Assistants From Joining Unions

Need Direction After California’s New Independent Contractor Law? Download the Playbook!

California Businesses May Need Emotional Support Clown When New Independent Contractor Law Takes Effect

Sperm Oil Legal Alert: Can You Sue under the Tax Code for Independent Contractor Misclassification?

Employees Say They’ve Been Robbed! NLRB Says Independent Contractor Misclassification Does NOT Violate the National Labor Relations Act

The Monster with Three Eyes Can Help You Avoid Claims of Joint Employment

Why Don’t Companies Offer Healthcare Benefits to Independent Contractors?

Can Your Business Be Liable for Sexual Harassment by an Independent Contractor?

How Do I Run a Background Check on an Independent Contractor?

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