Receiving a Fair Paycheck as an Independently Contracted Houston Lawn Care Provider
Lawn care can be back-breaking work. Raking, watering, planting, and mowing are not always pleasant, especially in the Texas heat. If you are not receiving fair wages or being properly compensated, that work can seem extra demanding.
A lawn care company designates five of their workers to complete a lawn project at a local business. The business owner just built a new building, and wants the lawn seeded, trees planted, and landscaping installed. The business owner is not sure if he wants or needs regular maintenance done to the property, so, for now, this is a one-time project. The employer decides to designate his five workers as independent contractors.
The contractors are required to arrive at the job site by 7am each morning and are not allowed to leave until 5pm each evening. From 7:30am to 9am, the foreman on the job, a worker who has been an employee of the lawn care company for more than 20 years, instructs the workers on how to do their jobs, and trains them on the proper way to plant the trees and install different portions of the landscape.
The workers are allowed to leave the site for lunch from noon to 1pm each day, as long as they use the portable time clock that is kept in the work truck.
The workers are paid every Friday. They do not receive overtime pay since they are considered independent contractors.
This scenario may sound like honest, hard work that is being fairly rewarded. But in reality, the workers could be missing out on hundreds of dollars each month since they have been misclassified as independent contractors. Here are just a few ways to recognize the misclassification from the scenario above:
Employers are not allowed to set contractors’ arrival or departure times from work.
Employers are not allowed to tell contractors when they are allowed to leave for lunch.
Independent contractors should not have to undergo training by the employer.
The above-mentioned workers were already employees of the lawn care company, and cannot be treated as independent contractors for one job.
The work that the lawn care contractors are completing is essential to the success of the lawn care company’s business, which means that the contractors should actually be considered employees.
One of the easiest ways to determine if you are being misclassified in your job is to ask an experienced Houston fair wages attorney. The lawyers at Kennedy Hodges will not only sit down with you – for free – to discuss your case, but they will also provide you with a complimentary copy of their book, The Ten Biggest Mistakes That Can Hurt Your Wage and Overtime Wage Claim. Simply call 888.449.2068 to schedule your appointment today.
