Georgians Who Find Work On Apps Defined As Contractors Under Bill
In Georgia and around the country, there are court cases over whether people who find work through apps like Uber are employees or independent contractors.
Kirsty Wigglesworth / Associated Press file
Many Georgians who find work through apps like Uber or TaskRabbit would be classified as contractors under a Republican-backed bill moving through the state Legislature.
In Georgia and around the country, there are numerous court cases over whether people who find work through apps are employees or independent contractors.
“Characterizing workers as non-employees has serious negative consequences for them,” said a report from the labor-aligned National Employment Law Project. “Non-employees have no statutory right to minimum wage, overtime pay, compensation for injuries sustained on the job, unemployment insurance if involuntarily separated from employment, or protection against discrimination.”
Non-employees may also miss out on companies’ benefits plans and federal protections for collective bargaining, the report said.
The cleaning and home improvement app Handy is backing bills in Georgia and at least seven other states to try and settle legal wrangling over who qualifies as an employee.
The legislation (HB 789) in Georgia, sponsored by state Rep. Barry Fleming, would classify anyone who finds work through an app as a “marketplace contractor.”
Fleming said the bill does nothing more than put court precedent into law.
“This is something to encourage these online companies to come and expand in Georgia to give our citizens more choices,” Fleming said.
But, Tony Tilley, a lobbyist with the Communications Workers of America, said the bill hurts small businesses and could mean Georgia loses out on some payroll taxes.
“Millions of dollars lost to the state in tax revenue by companies that don’t want to play by the rules,” Tilley said.
For the bill to become law, it still needs final approval from the state Senate and state House before the end of next week.
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