On July 20, a bipartisan group of legislators introduced a bill in the U.S. House to allow businesses to continue classifying their gig workers as independent contractors, while providing the gig workers with some legal protections.

Reps. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, Michelle Steel, R-Calif., and Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., proposed the bill, which would maintain flexibility of independent work and guarantee certain workplace protections for gig workers. The relationship between the worker and employer would be defined through a worker flexibility agreement and voluntarily agreed to before work begins.

The bill would:

• Allow gig workers to accept or reject assignments, giving them control over when, where and how much they work.
• Preserve protections against discrimination, retaliation and harassment.
• Allow gig workers to provide services for multiple platforms at the same time.
• Require companies to give workers a written summary of any health, pension, training or other benefits they may be eligible to receive.
• Give gig workers rights related to privacy, safety and leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act.
  

"In this relationship, the worker is not treated as an employee by the employer for federal tax purposes and would receive a 1099 at the end of the calendar year, rather than a W2," said Sara Jodka, a lawyer with Dickinson Wright in Columbus, Ohio. "The law would create a clear way for employers to work with [gig workers] and save money on their federal tax liabilities,...

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