More details to this question:
I currently work as an independent contractor for an app called Handy. So today I went and completed a job assignment, when I accepted the assignment the pay was supposed to be for $225. After completing the job assignment, Handy decided to change the amount of pay I would receive. When I reached out to them to ask them why, they told me that I fall under the flare rate payment tier. And that I had worked only 3 hours and I was going to get paid only for the 3 hours, when in fact I worked 4 hours and a half. If I am a independent contractor I'm supposed to get paid what we had agreed when I accepted the job assignment. They constantly are changing the pay that I had agreed to when I accepted the job assignment. Please advise
1 ANSWER
It sounds very likely that you have been misclassified as an independent contractor. As you may have heard, California has enacted legislation recently to codify the "ABC Test" - a simplified test for determining whether an individual is an employee or an independent contractor. Most gig economy companies under the ABC test fail in that regard. And certainly a determination of employee status would help here.
In addition, it could be argued that Handy is breaching its contract with you, or breaching the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, by changing your pay structure for jobs completed or which will be completed. These causes of action do not require you to demonstrate that you were misclassified at all.
All that being said, your question raises a number of issues which would be best served by a conversation with a licensed attorney.
Answered on Nov 12th, 2019 at 11:14 AM