Complimentary webinar from Diana Maier on how to correctly classify contractors v. employees.

Employment and privacy lawyer Diana Maier and her guest Carlos E. Torres, a Hearing Officer for the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE), will discuss which factors matter most in deciding whether to classify workers as employees or contractors in light of recent legal decisions. The webinar will occur Wednesday, October 14th at 12pm PST. In addition to covering a broad overview of the contractor v. employee debate, Diana and Deputy Torres will discuss ethical considerations for lawyers considering the question of contractor classification, and assess whether the sharing economy is due for extinction due to recent lawsuits the industry has faced regarding misclassification of its workers.

According to the California Department of Industrial Relations: “The misclassification of workers results in a loss of payroll tax revenue to the State, estimated at $7 billion per year… On Sept. 8, 2011, the California legislature passed Senate Bill 459 prohibiting the willful misclassification of individuals as independent contractors. The new legislation, enacted on Oct. 9, 2011, creates civil penalties of between $5,000 and $25,000 per violation.”

If you think this law doesn’t affect you, you might want to think again. As the sharing economy goes mainstream, the number of workers classified as independent contractors has grown exponentially beyond what it was just 10 years ago. Small businesses are using independent contractors to avoid the costs associated with bringing on employees, often believing themselves incorrectly to be working within legal lines. As the class action lawsuit against Uber demonstrates, though misclassifying workers can be extremely costly.

Open to the public, this 60-minute webinar presented by Ms. Maier will be of special interest to businesses that use contractors or consider using contractors, business owners, CFOs, HR professionals and anyone who is making decisions about how to classify workers. Additionally, one hour of ethics MCLE credit will be granted for attorney participants.