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Showing posts with label Employment Status. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Employment Status. Show all posts

Thursday, June 1, 2023

NJ Targets Rampant Misclassification of Drywall Workers


In its second strategic enforcement initiative, focusing on the drywall industry, the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (NJDOL) reached a first-of-its-kind enhanced compliance agreement with Donald Drywall, L.L.C. of Lakewood after investigators found the subcontractor had committed numerous wage and hour, earned sick leave, and employee misclassification violations.

Saturday, February 11, 2023

Employers Fined $1.3 Million for MIsclassification of Workers Including Failure to Have Adequate Workers' Compensation Insurance

The State of New Jersey is strictly enforcing laws that mandate a worker's employment status be properly reported and that employers provide adequate workers' compensation insurance coverage. The state has some of the strictest laws in the country and they are being enforced vigorously through a multi-agency protocol.

Monday, September 12, 2022

Dual Employment and the Proposed NLRB Joint-Employer Standard

Workers’ compensation claims may be pursued against two companies if there is found to be joint employment. While case law defines employment status, the US National Labor Relations Board has issued a proposed Rule to substantiate a dual employer status.

Friday, August 19, 2022

NJDOL Uses Expanded Powers to Stop Worker Exploitation at Job Sites

In the three years since Governor Murphy signed a law expanding NJDOL’s powers to stop work on a job site when there is strong evidence workers are being exploited, the department has issued 71stop-work orders, through which agentsfound nearly $1 millionin back wages owedto 235 workers. 

Friday, January 28, 2022

Limited Liability Corporation Is Bound by Election of Coverage for Members

The NJ Appellate Division ruled that the members of a Limited Liability Corporation had an affirmative responsibility to elect workers' compensation coverage. Since the corporation failed to do so, liability cannot be shifted to the Workers' Compensation insurance producer or the insurance company.

Tuesday, July 13, 2021

NJ Enacts Legislation to Protect New Jersey Workers, Employers From Unlawful Misclassification

Building on his commitment to making sure that workers and employers in New Jersey are treated fairly, Governor Phil Murphy today signed a four-bill legislative package furthering state efforts to stop employee misclassification. 

Tuesday, May 11, 2021

NJ Successfully Targets Employee Misclassification

In response to a report issued by Governor Murphy’s Task Force on Employee Misclassification, the New Jersey Department of the Treasury has made significant strides to deter misclassification by organizations that do business with the State in order to help address the underlying causes that lead to ever-widening income inequality.

Sunday, November 8, 2020

When is an off-regular-hours activity not in the course of the employment?

The NJ Supreme Court is deliberating on the issue of whether an an employee should receive workers’ compensation if an injured occurred at an off-regular-hours event. The issue presented to the Court was whether an employee is entitled to benefits under the Workers’ Compensation Act, specifically N.J.S.A. 34:15-7, for injuries that occurred while she was volunteering at her employer’s “Family Fun Day” event?

Friday, September 25, 2020

US DOL Proposes New Rule Defining Independent Contractor Status

The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a proposed rule clarifying the definition of employee under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) as it relates to independent contractors.

Tuesday, August 13, 2019

Employment Status: NCAA Division 1 Player Not an Employee

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district court’s dismissal of a Division I college football player’s claim that he was an employee of the National Collegiate Athletic Association and the PAC-12 Conference within the meaning of the Fair Labor Standards Act and California labor law and thus entitled to minimum wage and overtime pay.

Wednesday, July 10, 2019

NJ Governor’s Report on Misclassification

Governor Phil Murphy today released a comprehensive report from the Task Force on Employee Misclassification, vowing to intensify efforts to curtail the widespread and illegal practice of misclassifying workers as independent contractors instead of employees, which cheats some workers out of benefits and wages, hurts law-abiding business owners, and costs the state tens of millions of dollars a year in lost employment-related tax revenue.

Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Trump's Gig Economy

Today's guest author is Jon Rehm, Esq. of the Nebraska bar.

The United States Department of Labor (DOL) published an opinion letter that would seem to exempt most so-called “gig economy” companies from federal wage and hour enforcement.

Monday, April 22, 2019

Employment Status Not Dependent on Exercising the Right to Control

Who an employee works for is determined by whether an employer may control the employee and not the exercise of the right. A NJ Appellate Court ruled in a dual employment issue that employment status is not dispositive by a single factor and that right to control an employee can be shared which establishes a dual employment situation.

Sunday, October 28, 2018

Taxi cab driver awarded workers compensation benefits

A New Jersey appellate court held that a taxi cab driver should be considered employee under both the "right to control test" and “the nature of the work test.” The Court further held that the parties are bound by a prior unreported decision from the appellate court since the parties were the same.

Wednesday, August 15, 2018

NJ Labor Department, USDOL Ink Agreement to Work Together to Protect Businesses and End Exploitation of Workers through Misclassification

The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development and the U.S Department of Labor pledged a historic new level of cooperation to protect New Jersey’s economy by signing an agreement on August 10, 2018 to work together to end illegal employee misclassification.

Thursday, December 14, 2017

Exclusivity Rule: Police Officer Hired to Direct Traffic Was a Special Employee-Unpublished Opinion

A municipal police officer who was hired by a contractor to direct traffic at a construction site was determined to be a “special employee” and barred from suing a co-worker of the construction company. The NJ Appellate Court has held, in an unpublished opinion*, the  “Exclusivity Rule” barred the institution of a civil action against a co-worker.

Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Employment Status: Common Law Tests May Need an Update

The application of the common-law standard to determine employment status may no longer be relevant in the age of the gig economy. The NJ Appellate Division ruled that the common law test utilized to determine employment status could not be utilized in the interpretation of a medical malpractice insurance policy.

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

Graduate Students Held to be Employees - NLRB Rules Bargaining Group


Todays' post is shared from the NYTimes.com

Punctuating a string of Obama-era moves to shore up labor rights and expand protections for workers, the National Labor Relations Board ruled Tuesday that students who work as teaching and research assistants at private universities have a federally backed right to unionize.

Saturday, April 2, 2016

Is Social Insurance in Our Nation's Future?

The changing economy presents both new concepts and new challenges. Over 60% of today's
children will be employed in jobs that don't even exist now. An interesting article explores whether social insurance, of which workers' compensation is a part, will even exist the future.

Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Adult Club Dancer Is An Employee

An adult club dancer was held to be an employee in a recent NJ workers' compensation decision. The Court relied upon both, the Right to Control Test and the Relative Nature of the Work Test in making its determination of employment status.

The Honorable E. Elaine Voyles, Judge of Compensation, held:

"Although the parties were unable to enter into any stipulations, many of the relevant facts are not disputed. The Petitioner was employed as a dancer at the time of her accident. The Respondent, is an adult club wherein Petitioner, and other dancers, entertained patrons. Both parties agreed that Petitioner was required to fill out an application (P1) and audition for her position. Both parties agreed that Petitioner's schedule changed on a weekly basis and that the dancers could set their own schedule. There was further agreement that Petitioner was not paid a salary and that she worked for tips. According to the testimony of both sides, Petitioner did not have to share her tips except for when she performed a "couch dance". The cost for a "couch dance" was $20 of which $15 was given to the dancer and five dollars was retained by the Respondent.
"Petitioner testified that once the weekly schedule was set the dancers were required to appear at their designated times. She further testified that she could not leave the facility between dances and that she was required to finish out her shift.
****
"In assessing the degree of Respondent's right to exercise control over the Petitioner, the Court must examine the arrangements made between the Petitioner and Respondent.  Despite the fact that Petitioner set her own hours I find the Respondent exercised a substantial degree of control over Petitioner.  Petitioner was required to converse with patrons and perform both pole and couch dances. Petitioner was not free to come and go as she pleased. Once she arrived for her shift she was required to stay until that shift was completed. Dancers were chastised if they were found not to be entertaining the patrons.
****
"The court further finds that Petitioner was economically dependent upon the Respondent. Petitioner testified that she worked an average of five shifts per week and that the shifts averaged 8- 12 hours in duration. Additionally, Petitioner testified that her only source of income at the time of her assault was the money she earned working for the Respondent. As stated previously the Court found the testimony of the petitioner to be credible.
Decided July 14, 2014 - Posted by NJ DWC September 29, 2015