independent contractor
(noun)
A person working independently, under a contract; a self-employed person.
Examples of independent contractor in the following topics:
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Fair Labor Standards Act
- The FLSA applies to "any individual employed by an employer" but not to independent contractors or volunteers because they are not considered "employees" under the FLSA.
- Still, an employer cannot simply exempt workers from the FLSA by calling them independent contractors, and many employers have illegally misclassified their workers as independent contractors.
- Courts will look at the "economic reality" of the relationship between the putative employer and the worker to determine whether the worker is, in fact, an independent contractor.
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US legal issues
- The sole proprietor may employ workers or engage independent contractors to increase skills available, but the business ceases to exist upon the owner's death.
- The corporation may employ workers and engage independent contractors as needed to increase skills available.Corporations are required, however, to acknowledge formally (in a written document) the individuals who are approved to engage in financial transactions on behalf of the entity.
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Affirmative Action
- In the United States, affirmative action refers to equal opportunity employment measures that Federal contractors and subcontractors are legally required to adopt.
- A written affirmative action program helps the contractor identify and analyze potential problems in the participation and utilization of women and minorities in the contractor's workforce.
- If there are problems, the contractor will specify in its AAP the specific procedures it will follow and the good faith efforts it will make to provide equal employment opportunity.
- OFCCP conducts compliance reviews to investigate the employment practices of government contractors.
- The investigator also checks to see whether the contractor is making special efforts to achieve equal opportunity through affirmative action.
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The Importance of Customers
- Internal customers: the individuals that are employed by, that use, or who rely on the work of others within an organization to perform responsibly (including employees, suppliers, contractors, shareholders, the community where the business is located, and other stakeholders).
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Environmental audits
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Overcoming wasteful building practices
- Fortunately, progress is being made remunerating contractors for long-term savings rather than how much money can be saved in building expenses in the short term.
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Case: China establishes a new employment contract law for 2008
- A contractor hiring employees in violation of the law who suffer harm will result in joint liability for the organization that employed such contractor and the contractor.
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The role of the astute manager
- Serving internal customers (employees, colleagues, suppliers, contractors, shareholders and other stakeholders) includes finding good people, educating (training) them, and giving them what they need so that they know the needs of the business, the business knows their requirements, and the two can serve each other.
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Special topic: supply chain management
- In many cases, the customer does not even know the installation was done by an outside contractor.
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Activities in the Human Resources Department
- This includes the activities of hiring new full-time or part-time employees, hiring contractors, and terminating employee contracts