Claims for wrongful termination result from occasions where employers fire their members of staff without reasonable grounds. The Workers Compensation Lawyer Law Firm assists 1099 independent contractors, as well as many other employees in Los Angeles, in filing such claims. Courts permit plaintiffs to file these claims as long as they are supported by law. In this article, we go over the legal rights and recourse that 1099 independent contractors have if they are wrongfully terminated from their jobs. You can contact us if you have any more questions regarding wrongful termination cases in Los Angeles.

Who is Considered a 1099 Independent Contractor?

When someone delivers products or services to someone else without being their employee, they are referred to as 1099 independent contractors. The receiver of the goods or services does not subtract social security taxes or other withholdings from the 1099 Independent Contractor's payments.

When it comes to filing tax returns, the employer presents their contractor with IRS form 1099 rather than Forms W-2 that regular employees utilize. However, utilizing Form 1099 isn't the only factor that determines whether you are an independent contractor or not.

California Labor Code § 3353 characterizes you as an independent contractor when you offer services on someone else's behalf, offer services on an assurance of certain payments for certain results, and remain in control regarding how the task is completed.

If the person receiving your services dictates how you accomplish the task rather than just stating the intended outcome, your arrangement will be said to be that of an employee and their employer. You are said to be an independent contractor only when you accomplish a certain request for a specific cost and have complete discretion over how the job is carried out. The employer does not have any control over how you receive the results; they are solely responsible for the outcomes. Being an independent contractor, you deliver particular services or goods to a business, yet the business does not have control or legal obligation over how you get to the outcome.

1099 Independent contractors dictate the benefits and drawbacks of self-employment, control the security of their workplace, and are those who are most adept at assessing safety costs against profitability.

California implemented the ABC test, often known as the criteria for establishing whether you're an independent contractor or an employee, in April 2018. The test assumes you're an employee, although an employer can classify you as an independent contractor when they can show:

  • You are not subject to their supervision or control over how you execute your job, both for job satisfaction and within your agreement.
  • You carry out tasks that are not typically part of the business activities for the employer
  • Generally, you operate in a separate line of work that is related to the job that you're doing.

If you satisfy the following three requirements, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) will classify you as an independent contractor:

  • You possess complete control over the execution of your agreement, and the method of production is entirely up to you
  • Normally, you run your independent enterprise
  • You decide where and when to execute your task, and you are responsible for providing all essential equipment and supplies. Additionally, the job you do calls for professional expertise that the employer does not typically employ.

What is Wrongful Termination?

Wrongful termination occurs when an employer terminates an employment agreement in violation of the employee's legal rights, public policy, or employment contract. The existing legislation and the requisite proof to demonstrate that the layoff was unwarranted might affect wrongful termination proceedings. Among these laws is the California employment-at-will statute.

California is an at-will state, which means that your employer can terminate you at any moment without giving you any reason. This also implies that you are free to end your employment offer with the company at any time. When you agree to sign an independent contractor's offer or an employment contract, take the time to grasp the details of the employer's terms of the contract of termination. Even with such rules, other important legal safeguards prohibit employers from abusing the employment-at-will provisions. These include contractual conditions, job rights, and public policy.

Every employer is required to respect and uphold his or her employee's legal rights. However, you can file a lawsuit in court if the employer violates your rights by engaging in illegal activities like retaliation, violating public policy, or discrimination. It's crucial to remember that an independent contractor cannot file claims against his or her employers. The cases are, nonetheless, allowed in certain extraordinary situations. A common situation is when a business owner or employer wrongly classified workers as independent contractors out of ignorance or to defraud to avoid providing benefits or handling tax filing on the staff member's behalf.

When you're wrongly classified as an independent contractor when you're an employee, your employer shifts the firm's costs to you. When the employer fires you, you're likely to face the same hurdles that an ordinary employee would face. Spotting a misclassification would entail checking for elements such as independence and control while doing your job. Independent contractors share the following characteristics:

  • They are allowed to provide similar services and solutions to other companies
  • They are employed and paid based on a project-by-project contract
  • The employing agency has no control over your working environment, resources, or the procedure through which you obtain results. The agency can only influence the desired outcome
  • They are recruited on a project-by-project basis, therefore he or she only stays with the business owner for a certain amount of time unless they keep extending their contract
  • They supply the necessary equipment and pay the overhead expenses, so they stand a chance to lose or make money from the venture
  • They provide the employment agency with a service that is different from what they do for a living
  • They work for a set amount of time

Here are several scenarios in which you could sue your employer:

Breach of Contractual Provisions

If you're an independent contractor, the most popular tactic to sue your employer is through a breach of contract case. Independent contractors are bound by a contract that details the project, the objectives, the responsibilities, and expectations. Additionally, it offers more details on dismissal and the circumstances surrounding it. Employers who disobey these contractual obligations subject the independent contractors to unnecessary financial hardship. In such a case, you could sue the individual in question for breach of contract.

A contract can either be written or oral, and it includes comments implying or indicating that an employer can't dismiss you without grounds. When you begin to work for any employer, you must sign a contract outlining the terms and conditions, the project you're working on, and the terms of dismissal. Such a contract shields employees from wrongful termination because the employer cannot dismiss him or her in violation of the contract's terms.

In most circumstances, the employer could legally cancel the contract if you failed to achieve the expected outcome or fulfill your part of the agreement. In this scenario, the employer can terminate the contract following the terms of the agreement. The process could include actions such as arbitration steps to allow the independent contractor to address his or her wrongdoing and a dismissal notice. The hiring entity should also cover the cost of any required fees.

If your employer breaks the terms of the contract, you can sue for breach of contract. In other circumstances, the employer would reclassify an individual as an employee by compelling him or her to sign and consent to a non-compete contract. A non-compete clause forbids you from offering similar services to other companies. Non-compete contracts are a type of control or authority exercised by the employers over the independent contractors. A non-compete agreement with any independent contractor is also void in court.

Discrimination

California's labor regulations don't shield employees from discrimination if they work as independent contractors. However, if an employer fires you unfairly because they mistakenly classified you as a 1099 independent contractor, you could have a valid case against them. The Fair Employment and Housing Act forbids discrimination in the workplace based on:

  • Age (for workers aged 40 years and above)
  • Marital status
  • Race, ethnicity, citizenship, and ancestry
  • A health condition
  • Physical or mental disability
  • Political or religious affiliation
  • Pregnancy
  • Your standing as a victim of offenses like domestic abuse, assault, or stalking
  • Veteran and military status
  • Sexual orientation, sex, gender, gender identity
  • Genetic information

When an employer fires you with discriminatory intent, you have the right to sue for damages caused. In such a case, you should provide proof of your employer's bias and discrimination.

Retaliation by an Employer

An independent contractor would at some point wonder how he or she is connected to their employer. If the independent contractor discovers the arrangement is one between employer and employee, he or she would file a class hour and wage action lawsuit for unpaid wages, rest, and meal breaks. If you report or file a lawsuit of a breach of California's labor laws involving employee misclassification, your employer would retaliate against the allegations.

Infringing Public Policies

Retaliation and infringement of public policies are two notions that are strongly related. The key distinction between the two would be that retaliation is founded on unpleasant employment measures taken after a worker makes an effort to exercise their rights and privileges granted by employment law. However, the violation of public policies refers to the wrongful termination founded on an employee's decision not to engage in illegal or unethical activity.

Termination For Political Pursuits

Employers are not allowed to:

  • Establish guidelines that forbid staff from participating in political activity, such as running for public office
  • Use threats of vengeance to influence or attempt to oversee political activity
  • Take legal action against a worker because of their political pursuits

You also can bring a case if your employer terminates you for becoming a member of or participating in a labor union's operations. If you have been terminated for voicing your political ideologies or participating in political debates, you have the right to bring legal action against your employer for breach of public policies or constructive wrongful discharge. You have the option of taking legal action against your company through the courts or the Labor and Workplace Development Agency (LWDA).

If you proceed through the LWDA, you will present a copy of the notification to the employer as well as a notice of infringement to the agency. The agency can look into your case, and they'll let you know in 65 days.

The LWDA will investigate the claim for between 120 to 180 days before deciding whether to take action against the employer.

You can file a lawsuit when the agency decides not to look into the matter or does not cite your employer. To increase your prospects of succeeding, you might want the assistance of a lawyer.

Wrongful Constructive Discharge

You could effectively file a lawsuit against your employer even if you leave your job on your own accord. Constructive discharge claims are filed when an employer purposely creates inhospitable working conditions, leaving you with no alternative but to leave. You must demonstrate the following when taking legal action against your employer for constructive wrongful discharge:

Your employer actively or knowingly engages in workplace retaliation that results in unbearable working conditions,

Your employer couldn't have dismissed you lawfully. If they would have discontinued your contract, then you'd have had a legitimate argument for wrongful discharge

The following are the components of constructive wrongful dismissal:

  • The employer deliberately permitted or purposefully caused unbearable or worsened conditions. If you are employed in the construction sector, for instance, and your employer ignores or permits a dangerous circumstance to continue until you resign out of concern for your wellbeing, you might be successful in suing the employer for wrongful dismissal. Any sensible employer would understand that under the given circumstances, the only option available to any sensible employee is a resignation

Depending on the nature or reason for your wrongful dismissal, there may be a statute of limitations that applies to the case against your employer. If this is the case, you must file it within that time frame. The statute of limitations is described below:

  • 1 year for constructive wrongful discharge that contravenes FEHA guidelines
  • 2 years for wrongful dismissal that contravenes an inferred or verbal agreement or one brought on by a breach of public policies, and
  • 3 years for wrongful constructive discharge in contravention of laws protecting whistleblowers

Your statute of limitations starts when you quit. Keep in mind that tolerating the unfavorable or unpleasant conditions at your workplace for an extended period can give the impression that the situations were not so bad that you decided to leave. The court may nevertheless consider your jeopardy of losing your position, your financial obligations, and other factors because some people cling to their jobs because they have no other means for surviving.

Unfair Termination in Contravention of the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act

According to the WARN Act, employers must provide workers with a 60-day notice of upcoming mass layoffs, plant closures, or relocations. You may file a claim for wrongful termination against your employer when they terminate you without following the act.

When a minimum of 50 workers are let go for 30 days, it's referred to as a mass layoff. When a business relocates, it means that most of its operations are moved to a new location a minimum of a hundred miles away. If an employer closes a factory, it signifies that the majority, if not all, of the company's commercial and industrial operations, have been terminated.

If your employer terminates you in a way that violates the WARN Law, you have the right to file a lawsuit and seek damages for the number of days the warning did not take into account. Employees are entitled to 30 days of pay, for instance, when a company announces its closing and closes the following 30 days.

However, the employer will be exempted from the WARN Act when:

  • He/she employs fewer than 75 people
  • Employees are laid off as a result of a war or natural disaster
  • The workers were aware that the company was participating in a temporary project
  • You either work seasonally
  • At the period of the warning, your employer was seeking finances that, if obtained, would have averted a relocation or closure

If your claim is successful, you'll be compensated for any lost earnings and benefits. You might be able to get your attorney fees back in certain circumstances.

Compensation for Wrongful Termination Claims

Wrongful termination can be difficult for anyone. It could come as a surprise and put you through a tough financial period. So, if you've been wrongfully terminated, get in touch with an attorney right away. Typically, a wrongful termination lawsuit might result in significant compensation. If the employer is found to have fired you unlawfully, you are entitled to financial compensation, including:

Lost Wages

You risk losing significant earnings following a wrongful dismissal. Lost wages are calculated by the courts from the termination date to the current day. If you are unable to find work since the dismissal, the court might grant you additional potential lost wages. But, the damages could be decreased up until the time you started your current job if you found work after being discharged.

The court takes into account the worth of your salary as well as inflation when figuring out how much money you are entitled to in compensation. When estimating lost pay, the tribunal also calculates how long the position would have lasted.

Lost Benefit Payments

You do not receive benefits from the employer because you are an independent contractor. But, if they incorrectly classified you, you are eligible to receive any benefits lost both during as well as after your job.

You may be eligible for benefits such as meal and rest periods, worker's compensation, medical insurance, and other things to which workers are lawfully entitled. The court will factor in the losses arising from a violation of an agreement for terminating you when determining the worth of lost income and benefits.

Emotional Distress

Unnecessary emotional strain and suffering can be brought on by wrongful termination. For instance, it may cause stress over how you can sustain your family and yourself as well as how prospective employers will view the dismissal.

The courts authorize compensation for any damages by evaluating the worth of emotional anguish. Anxiety and depression are only a couple of the related conditions that reveal emotional distress.

 In some circumstances, the court will offer you reparations for the damages your termination caused to your career and reputation. You should be aware that you can only be awarded compensation for emotional distress when the wrongful dismissal was caused by a breach of public law, whistleblower reprisal, FEHA reprisal, or violations of the WARN Act.

Legal Fees

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act, FEHA, as well as Wage and Hour statutes permit you to seek compensation for your legal costs in instances of wrongful termination brought about by whistleblower reprisal. In situations in which you have a good case against your employer, they could want to settle out of court. The majority of wrongful termination cases are resolved outside of court.

Taking legal action might give you a feeling of justice or closure along with financial restitution for the losses you incur as a result of wrongful termination. In other situations, you might find closure since it might stop that employer from wrongfully terminating more independent contractors.

Punitive Damages

These kinds of damages are a type of retaliation against the employer for unjustly firing a worker. Punitive damages may be awarded on an individual basis, based on if the act amounted to coercion, malice, or deception.

Find a Workers Compensation Lawyer Near Me

Many workers' compensation cases must adhere to specific procedural standards that can be difficult for the average person to comprehend. The Workers Compensation Lawyer Law Firm can help if you have been the victim of wrongful termination in Los Angeles. We will evaluate your situation and offer the best defense counsel. An employee who has been wrongfully terminated may be entitled to additional workers' compensation payments, and recover lost income. Call us at 424-501-9228 to schedule a consultation with one of our representatives.