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Delivery Drivers Misclassified As Independent Contractors, No Wages

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  • 02-18-2008, 08:26 PM
    jmk818
    Delivery Drivers Misclassified As Independent Contractors, No Wages
    I am in Rhode Island

    I work as a delivery driver for a local chinese restaurant. They misclassify all of us drivers as independent contractors. Although we do not have a timeclock, we are on a schedule expected to be in the resturant for specific shifts. We do not get paid, we make a flat $2 per delivery in cash plus our tips at the end of the night. Our delivery area is so large that on a busy night we wind up doing about 20 deliveries and drive 60-120 miles. The $2 per delivery hardly covers the expense, in addition, the fee is paid from the customer. There are specific examples of drivers losing their "jobs" if they are assigned to but refuse to work a slow shift. In addition we have no control over the way we do our jobs. Although it sometimes does not make sense the way they order the deliveries, and sometimes requires even more milage and time, they dictate the order the deliveries must be done.

    When i started the job all i was asked to provide was a copy of my license. Is it possible without a written agreement and a start and end date for me to be an independent contractor without any proof on their end that i signed anything?

    I have put in over 1500 hours to this company and coming up to the one year mark, and with tax time approaching have no way to pay my taxes as I am living week to week on about $210-280 in earnings per week minus the expense of providing my own car, its maintainance, and gas. It has become so bad that I as a 28 year old needed my father to purchase a new car for me when my prior one died, he also pays my rent, and my car insurance.

    The tip of the iceberg was tonight, my boss called me aside and stated that what he was doing for the other drivers was giving them a $100 check for each month worked in 2007, which would be a nice boost for me, however the stipulation is that we would have to pay $100 in cash for each $100 issued. I called the RI DOL a few weeks ago, however they claim to not be able to help since we don't use a time clock system.

    I want to go after them for unpaid wages, there is another former driver who also wants to as well. There is another who is completely perplexed by them classifying us as independent contractors. There are also one or two customers who were suprised by how we got paid and offered their help in this matter.

    There was a time when i began to get fed up by this employment situation and saved receipts from deliveries made to prove employment if it ever came to that, then one night they asked why I was keeping the reciepts and I told them that I was saving them to help back up my mileage on my taxes and they replied that that was not ok, and thy needed the reciepts, when the truth is that they shove them all into a big box in no order at all, making me assume that they cancel out orders and skim from the registers. Its a family owned business, and everyone but the drivers is in the family.

    There are lots of questions and ponderings here, but the one that is most relevant as of now is if i can go into the restuarant with a tape recorder in my pocket and talk to them about the offer to pay me $100 per every month worked, when i give them $100 cash. The IRS might be interested in such a conversation. I have been wondering for a while something about the chinese surnames so i can even get his name on the tape. Could this hold up in court.

    Would it also be wise to record interactions like them telling me what delivery to do first, me state i want to change the order and them irately tell me that it needs to be done in the order they want it in. I also want to record them encouraging me to pay $100 for $100 checks.

    Other damages to me since being employed here, loss of insurance, and no way to possibly afford paying out of poeket. Lost my CPAP machine, which allows me to sleep well, restoratively, and safely. I worry every night, is this the night I will have a heart attack and die. Can i sue for a replacement out of pocket CPAP machine, as well as my back wages. Am i eligible to get some punative damages as well?

    Let me know.

    Justin (AKA Fed Up)
  • 02-18-2008, 08:50 PM
    jk
    Re: Delivery Drivers Misclassified As Independent Contractors, No Wages
    IRS form ss-8
  • 02-18-2008, 10:00 PM
    Betty3
    Re: Delivery Drivers Misclassified As Independent Contractors, No Wages
    Here is the US DOL fact sheet re employee v. IC.

    http://www.dol.gov/esa/regs/compliance/whd/whdfs13.pdf

    re your wages, etc. you might want to contact your state's DOL (you might be misclassified) or an employment attorney & sue in court.
  • 05-20-2009, 01:17 AM
    jmk818
    Re: Delivery Drivers Misclassified As Independent Contractors, No Wages
    the ss8 came back with me as an employee, seeing how I never made wages, I was terminated because I filed an ss8, can I now sue. I have 2000 hours which I never was paid for, I can additionally sue under the fair wage laws, in addition whistleblowing termination. Am i correct?
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