The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has issued updates to its Strategic Enforcement Plan for 2017-2021 . At first glance it looks a lot like the current plan. Then, like many government statements, there is a hidden line that gives a clue to where the EEOC is going:
The Commission adds a new priority to address issues related to complex employment relationships and structures in the 21st century workplace, focusing specifically on temporary workers, staffing agencies, independent contractor relationships, and the on-demand economy.
The US government is playing catch up to the gig economy—Uber, Lyft, etc. Yet this priority has noteworthy implications for all employers. Misclassification of employees is a complicated and expensive issue. The EEOC is joining the chorus of the Department of Labor (DOL) Misclassification Initiative.
If you have not reviewed your employee classification to comply with the December 1, 2016 DOL deadline on the “White Collar” Overtime mandate you might reconsider an audit or position classification service. The message from the Feds is clear: misclassify employees at your peril (and you thought I was going to write: we just keep coming up with new regs to make it harder to do business!).
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