Governor Chris Christie Vetoes an Attempt to Redefine Independent Contractor
On September 9, 2013, Governor Chris Christie (R-NJ) vetoed a piece of legislation that would have prohibited drayage, or short distance truckers, from being classified as “independent contractors” unless the employer could show the workers are truly independent.
In order for this classification to have been met, the business would have been required to prove the workers are free from their daily control, the employee works in an independent trade and the service the individual in question performs is outside the usual course of place of business.
As part of Vice President Joe Biden’s Middle Class Task Force, the Department of Labor announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with the IRS to work together and share information to reduce incidence of misclassification. 14 states have since signed MOU’s to enable the DOL to share information and coordinate enforcement efforts to reclassify workers as employees.
Since that time, several states and a Member of Congress have been working to define the relationship between independent contractor and employee to provide more clarity for all involved.
