Worked as a misclassified independent contractor for 10 months. Brought up the issue of misclassification at the beginning of this month via email. This was ignored and never addressed. A week later I stated my intention to end the contract if the issue remained unaddressed. This past Thursday, I had a meeting with my boss via Zoom regarding the misclassification, which ended with him telling me there was no longer a budget for my position and the contract would be ending by the end of the month. He stated they intended to use other services going forward, in order to cut costs. He promised to pay me two months of pay.
The next day, I received an email from him with a “settlement agreement” I was required to sign in order to receive $1500 (we had a retainer agreement for 25 hours per month at $30/hr, though I typically earned anywhere from $2000-$4000/mo; 25 hrs was the minimum I was expected to work). Obviously, they offered me the lowest rate possible. During our meeting the previous day, he failed to mention I would need to sign this agreement in order to receive the pay. Instead, he made it sound like he was offering to pay me for two months, out of the goodness of his heart. LMAO.
The agreement states that I was never an employee, am liable for all of my own self employment taxes, and will not hold them liable in any way, for basically anything, along with some bullshit about not disparaging them publicly or to other employees/contractors who are still employed. I wrote back that I was not willing to sign the agreement or accept the settlement because I was in fact misclassified under both state and federal law. I had already spoken to my state's Labor board and several attorneys who agreed that I had been misclassified, though I did not mention this. I then stated that I was ending my contract, effective immediately. I have heard no response from them so far.
In my mind, offering a “settlement” of any kind, implies that they are aware they have violated certain laws. I feel fairly certain that this document only further helps my case, but I am wondering if anyone else has other thoughts. I think them choosing to end my contract rather than simply reclassify me can be interpreted as retaliation/wrongful termination of some kind. But I am not entirely sure. I am seeking legal counsel. At this point, it's just a matter of finding someone willing to take my case. If that is a no-go, I still intend to, at the least, file actions with the state Labor Commission, and the IRS (I never received a 1099 in 2021, despite asking for one. Yet I still reported my income and paid taxes on it).
What I will NOT do, is let this go unaccounted for. I have been fucked around by so many employers in my lifetime, and in many cases, I just did not have the energy to fight back when I really should have. I am now done with not holding these types of scumbag companies accountable for willful violations and unethical practices.