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ILR Impact Brief – Employee or Independent Contractor? Misclassification Comes at a Price

Author
Donahue, Linda H.; Lamare, James Ryan; Kotler, Fred B.
Abstract
Misclassification of workers occurs at the time of hiring, when individuals are categorized as employees or independent contractors. The legal distinction between the two relates to the right of control over work: employees take direction from employers as to the means, methods, and outcome; independent contractors are in business for themselves and retain the right to control how they will accomplish the task they’ve been hired to perform. This study covers certain key industries in New York State for the years 2002-2005. Audits performed by the Department of Labor Unemployment Insurance Division indicate approximately 10% of private-sector employers did not comply with state regulations when classifying new hires; construction industry employers accounted for an estimated 14.9% of this group. The data also show that approximately 10.3% of private-sector workers were misclassified as independent contractors and about 14.8% of this cohort worked in construction.
Journal/Series
Impact Brief
Description
The ILR Impact Brief series highlights the research and project based work conducted by ILR faculty that is relevant to workplace issues and public policy. The Briefs are prepared by Maralyn Edid, Senior Extension Associate, ILR School.
Date Issued
2007-04-01Subject
impact brief; performance; worker; misclassification; employee; contractor; business; New York State; unemployment insurance; regulation; industry
Related to
To read the full report, please see: The Cost of Worker Misclassification in New York State.
Related To:
https://hdl.handle.net/1813/74338Rights
Required Publisher Statement: Copyright by Cornell University.
Type
newsletter