Los Angeles Contract Workers Rights Lawyer

Los Angeles Contract Workers Rights Attorney

Hennig Kramer Ruiz & Singh, LLP Believe Everyone Deserves Protection

If you are an independent contractor or temporary worker hired on a contractual basis, you have rights in California. The lawyers at Hennig Kramer Ruiz & Singh, LLP will aggressively fight to make sure you are afforded the workplace rights to which you are entitled.

All of our Los Angeles contract workers’ rights attorneys have at least a decade’s worth of experience. As a firm, we are committed to providing aggressive advocacy for every client. We are passionate about employment law and are prepared to use our extensive experience to help you.

Were You Misclassified as a Contract Worker?

In 2019, California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, signed Assembly Bill (AB) 5. This new law has dramatically affected the way independent contractors and their employers do business.

Additionally, this new law places greater detail and restrictions on what classifies someone as an independent contractor and how an employer can utilize them when doing business.

Consequently, if you are an independent contractor in Los Angeles who has an issue with your employer, you want to be sure you work with an employment attorney who is familiar with this new law, like ours at Hennig Kramer Ruiz & Singh, LLP.

According to California’s Department of Industrial Relations, the following conditions must be met to classify a worker as an independent contractor:

• The employer does not control or direct the worker regarding their performance of the work contracted, under the contract and in fact
• The work performed by the contractor is outside the regular operation of the employer’s business
• The field of work typically engaged in by the independently established worker is the same as the work they are performing under the contract.

In many cases, employers will hire a contractor instead of an employee as a way to avoid providing benefits, paying payroll taxes, and paying overtime. This can result in the misclassification of an employee as an independent contractor.

If the contractor can demonstrate that the nature of the relationship evolved beyond an independent contractor status, or that the employer misclassified the worker as an independent contractor, then the employer may be required to adhere to wage and hour laws.

Understanding the Employer/Contractor Relationship

Independent contractors do have rights under federal and state wage and hour laws. However, much depends on the nature of the relationship that develops between the contracting parties throughout the contract.

Problems often arise when employers agree to a consulting contract and then expand responsibilities and expectations to those that would generally go to an employee. Additionally, employers sometimes fail to live up to their end of the contract. When this happens, the worker may have claims for breach of contract.

When working on your case, our contract workers’ rights lawyers in Los Angeles will look at all aspects of your relationship with your employer, including:

• The details of your original contract
• The length of the original contract
• Where and how the contracted work is performed
• When and over what hours the work was to be performed
• How you were paid, for example by the hour or by project
• How the employer handled your benefits and taxes
• Whether you were prohibited from taking other work from other employers during the contract

We Are Detail-Oriented Attorneys

Cases involving contract worker’s rights require great attention to detail and an ability to assess the complicated laws surrounding contract work. Hennig Kramer Ruiz & Singh, LLP is a results-focused employment law firm, and our Los Angeles attorneys have extensive experience handling independent contractor rights claims.

If you believe that you are being misclassified or that your contract is being violated, start by documenting the way the contracting company did not meet expectations regarding the contract you agreed to.

Your documentation of circumstances and events will be relevant when building your case. Contact our offices in Los Angeles to schedule a free consultation and bring your notes and signed copy of your contract with you.

Hennig Kramer Ruiz & Singh, LLP stands up for workers’ rights. Call us today at (213) 310-8301.