As news broke about the $100 million back tax payment paid to the State of New Jersey by Uber and its subsidiary, Riser, the New Jersey State AFL-CIO expressed its support for the Murphy Administration in their enforcement of laws concerning employee misclassification of workers as independent contractors.
“This illustrates that the gig is up, companies that intentionally misclassify employees in order to increase their profits at the expense of worker rights are now on notice – this unlawful practice is not tolerated here in New Jersey” said New Jersey State AFL-CIO President Charles Wowkanech.
When employers violate the “ABC test” to determine if workers are employees or independent contractors, not only do they cheat the State of New Jersey out of a significant amount of tax revenue, but they also put legitimate employers at a competitive financial disadvantage. It also stripes away many worker protections such as unemployment insurance, workers compensation coverage and the right to join a union, among others.
The New Jersey State AFL-CIO urges the federal Department of Labor to take a strong stance against this anti-worker practice and for the Murphy Administration to continue to pressure unscrupulous businesses from engaging in this fraudulent practice.
Legitimate independent contractors should and will continue to work in this status and remain unaffected by New Jersey’s laws on the issue. However, misclassification is a “lose-lose” for companies that play by the rules and for workers that are denied earned benefits under the law.
For additional information about the Uber tax payment, please visit:
https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/uber-pays-new-jersey-100-mln-back-taxes-over-driver-employment-status-nyt-2022-09-13/