Legal Question in Business Law in Colorado

Currently, I work for a company as an HR representative that does not have any employees, but only independent contractors. The owner recently implemented a new policy. This policy includes some points that i believe teeter along the lines of formal employment. For clarification, these independent contractors are not doing any tangible work for a project or painting a house, or doing any task with measurable progress. They are selling perfumes and colognes. The first concern that I have is they have to request time off. Additionally, when they request time off they are required to “make up” their hours but their not getting paid hourly. Another point of concern is that they have to tell the owner the reason that they are taking time off. They’re also required to show up scheduled shifts. They’re also penalized for not completing their shifts. Plus a couple of other points that are concerning. I just pretty much need to know what you can and cannot require of independent contractors.


Asked on 10/20/22, 9:23 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Frank Natoli Natoli-Legal, LLC

In all likelihood you are describing misclassified employees. What you allude to here leaves little doubt that there is a strong element of control rendering them employees in this context. The employer, assuming this is accurate, has exposure. Should any one of them file, for example, a wage claim dispute with the Dept of Labor the employer may be audited and then fined quite severely for not properly payrolling, etc.

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Answered on 10/20/22, 11:00 am


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