Does your employer classify you as an independent contractor and have you work hours upon hours every week without paying you overtime? If you qualify as an independent contractor, then there’s likely no problem with your employer’s refusal to pay overtime.
But sometimes that is not the end of the story. Sometimes employers classify individuals as independent contractors and deny them overtime pay, even though they actually are employees and are entitled to overtime pay. If your employer is misclassifying you as an independent contractor, it may be violating the Fair Labor Standards Act.
INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR VS. EMPLOYEE ANALYSIS
To determine whether you are an independent contractor or an employee, generally, a court will look to the economic reality of the relationship between you and your employer and whether that relationship demonstrates dependence. Among the factors that may help to determine whether you are an independent contractor or an employee:
(1) the nature and degree of the employer’s control as to the manner in which the work is to be performed;
(2) your opportunity for profit or loss depending upon your managerial skill;
(3) your investment in equipment or materials required for the task, or your employment of workers;
(4) whether your services rendered require a special skill;
(5) the degree of permanency and duration of the working relationship between you and your employer;
(6) the extent to which your services rendered are an integral part of the employer’s business.
Even if your employer is telling you that you are an independent contractor, it may be misclassifying you and denying you overtime to which you are entitled under the Fair Labor Standards Act. If you think your employer might be misclassifying you as an independent contractor, please contact a Fair Labor Standards Act lawyer at Weiner & Sand LLC to discuss your rights.