The Department of Labor has proposed a rule that will set a framework for employers “to designate workers as independent contractors or employees who are eligible for minimum wage and overtime protections.” The proposal has received the go-ahead from the White House and will soon be published to the Federal Register, where it will be open for public comment.
This comes as California continues to discern how to implement A.B. 5, which requires app-based companies to classify their operators as employees instead of independent contractors, without seeing these businesses leave the state; which is exactly what Uber and Lyft threatened to do before the state scaled back implementation of the law. Now, these same app-based gig companies are backing their own ballot measure – one that would once again allow the firms to classify workers as independent contractors.
