The Reviewing Board of the Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents (DIA) once famously observed, “The issue of who is an independent contractor and who is an employee has bedeviled the bar and bench since the beginning of workers’ compensation.” MacTavish v. O’Connor Lumber Co., 6 Mass. Workers’ Comp. Rep. 174, 177 (1992). Based on recent […]
It’s Not What You Say But What You Do – The Pitfalls of Not Properly Classifying Workers
The Case: Travelers v. Universal Drywall, LLC
The Hazards of Inaccurate Applications and Signing the Insured’s Name
The case of RLI Insurance Co. v. Santos, 746 F.Supp.2d 255 (D. Mass. 2010).
Looking at the Massachusetts Independent Contractor Law
Insurance agencies in Massachusetts, for purposes of their own employment practices and those of their customers (e.g. employment benefits clients, workers compensation insureds) need to be mindful of the current law concerning employment classification. Many Massachusetts employers believe that simply issuing one of their workers a 1099 and/or requiring that the worker sign an “independent […]
