A new reason to get classifications correct.

If you misclassify an employee as an independent contractor, you could face legal heat from the IRS and U.S. Labor Department. Now the National Labor Relations Board is looking at bringing another layer of pain. For employers, this is fresh incentive to ensure you make the correct choice in the employee vs. contractor decision.

What's new? The NLRB filed a complaint against an employer recently that claims such misclassifications would count as an "unfair labor practice" under federal labor law because it would deprive workers of their right to unionize. And the NLRB's new general counsel says she wants the board to start considering other misclassifications as such labor law violations.

In 2019, the NLRB, which tilted conservative at the time, ruled that misclassifications do not constitute a labor violation. If the NLRB starts ruling in the opposite direction, that could substantially alter the employee/contractor landscape. (Deco Logistics, NLRB)

How to make the call: Remember that making the employee-or--contractor decision must be based on specific criteria--not a whim. It all comes down to one question: How much control do you have over that worker's schedule, his work process and his...