Bipartisan Proposal Takes Aim at Gig Worker Classification Fight

A new bipartisan proposal on Capitol Hill that’s backed by major gig companies and trucking and construction associations would allow businesses to continue treating their workers as independent contractors, while also providing some protections typically provided to employees.

The discussion draft legislation, “The Worker Flexibility and Choice Act,” sponsored by Reps. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), and Michelle Steel (R-Calif.) would establish “worker flexibility agreements” under the Fair Labor Standards Act, which the lawmakers characterize as a new type of a work arrangement.

Those agreements would supersede state and local laws regarding classification, like California and Massachusetts’ broad “ABC” ...