Senator Steve Padilla, a Democrat from San Diego, has raised serious allegations against remote HR unicorn Deel. In a letter addressed to Stewart Knox, the Secretary of Labor for the State of California, Senator Padilla claims that Deel, valued at $12 billion in its latest fundraising round, is advising its clients, including major California companies, to misclassify their employees and evade taxes, as well as avoid providing employee benefits.
According to the Senator, Deel's CEO, Alex Bouaziz, who is also one of the company's founders, allegedly approached clients and suggested alternative methods of employing workers to avoid hefty tax payments. The American press has reported that Bouaziz even offered to assist these companies in implementing these strategies.
Furthermore, Senator Padilla highlighted that Deel itself classifies its workers as independent contractors rather than employees, thereby denying them various benefits they would have been entitled to if they were classified as regular employees. This practice has raised concerns about the company's treatment of its workforce.
The allegations made by Senator Padilla are significant, as they call into question Deel's business practices and the potential exploitation of workers.
“No company is above the law. Deel has been openly flaunting their violation of California labor laws, intentionally misclassifying their employees as independent contractors and denying them critical benefits,” said Senator Padilla in a...
I was struck by a classic example of “Don’t believe everything you read” on the front page of the Middletown newsletter, “Middletown Today,” (September 2026 Volume 6 Edition 12). What caught my eye...