Causes and Problems: Part 1: The "contractor" economy

This will be an ongoing series of discussions about some of the crucial causes of our current poor state of economic and developmental paralysis in our country.


I hope that by detailing these problems, we will figure out ways to eliminate them:

Today:  On Marketplace, they discussed the Contractor Generation.  Or just listen here:

The Underemployed Generation.
The baby boomers were children of  "The Greatest Generation", those who lived through the depression and World War II (the SECOND war to end all wars!?)

Today our children (and a great deal of us baby boomers too) are underemployed.

Underemployed and non-employed at the same time.

This is because of the Contractor.   According to the IRS, an employee has to pass 3 basic areas before they are considered independent contractors.

1. Behavioral Control
2. Financial Control
3. Relationship of the parties 

Behavioral Control
These three areas are most likely out of the scope of what you'd be interested in reading, but essentially, "A worker is an employee when the business has the right to direct and control the worker."


Financial Control
The three main facts covered here are : Significant Investment ; Expenses and  Opportunity for Profit or Loss.

 Relationship of the parties 
Employee Benefits and Written Contracts cover these areas..

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As a case study, let's look at my employment situation.
I am under-employed.  I long for a new full time Job (as a computer geek in case any one has something open, my resume says, "Been there; Done that!") in the computer industry.
However, baring that I attempt to stay as employed as possible as a "FOR HIRE" Geek.


Thus, my employment status is: BARELY.  I make NO hourly wage for most of the companies I work for, but get a per-assignment wage (which might be based on an hourly price).


I get no benefits, I get no paid vacation, I get none of the benefits our society usually associates with employment, including NO workers compensation or unemployment benefits.


THE COMPANY I am working for gets no extended costs associated with hiring an employee, that add to the economic growth of the country.  

I also suffer by NOT being counted in the unemployment statistics. (I believe that THIS is why our national employment rate is less then 10% instead of the 18 or 19% rate it would be if we counted people who WANTED to work full time...)

SO:   A recommendation:

We want Jobs, we want the economy to pick up, we need to RESTRICT the ability of businesses to use CONTRACTORS.

Proposal 1:  If you work at a company's location, use their equipment, and perform the work under their directions, you are NOT a contractor.

This is a good example of a rule being re-instated that will forcibly REGULATE the workplace, and will remove a small bit of the LAX rulemaking  that has destroyed our country.

I hope this is a good introduction to ONE small step we can take to restore our country.