O/O Passenger Laws

There are a crap load of owner ops and smaller companies you need to inform about this then. I see jobs like this all the time on craigslist. i even had a company contact me a couple of weeks ago, one of those lowball companies i have read about on here and thats the only way any of their drivers work. Every driver at that company is 1099. I talked with a guy running a few trucks for Greatwide a while back and he was hiring on with a 1099, had all 3 or 4 of his drivers on 1099.I dont think its completely illegal when your company is under a certain size(i could be making that up though but it seems like i have heard or read that). You see a lot of guys running expedite trucks that hire drivers on with 1099's

 

They know, they just don't care, but they will when the IRS finds out.

 

If they meet the standards, it's legal.

But almost all of them are actually employees,

and canNOT work under a 1099 !!

 

You are reading the regs right--but since it isn't your truck you MUST check with the owner about their insurance--some companies will some won't depends on the policy--it all has to do with liability in case there is a problem!
Just my $.02

 

IRS would be a starting point.
http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1779.pdf

Here is a reply made to someone on this before.


First. You are not a sub contractor. The "company" is not properly handling the payment to the "employee". An illegal transaction to say the least.

A sub contractor provides their equipment for the operation. You are nothing more than a driver who is using their truck. If the truck dies, you are not responsible to fix it. You cannot take the truck and go somewhere else.

You do not license the vehicle, nor insure it.

As an employee, the law requires him to provide the employer share of Social Security and Medicare taxes.

It also can require the owner to have workmen's compensation insurance. I assure you, he most likely has none since he does not comply with the law.

Your choice to work for him is not in your best interest.

Link to a comment on the subject made previously

http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tru...ee#post1551681

 

http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=99921,00.html

 

I'll tell you the reason....to get out of paying some taxes. It's rarely legal. Ask the multitudes of contractors for FedEx who were paying employees on 1099's and not withholding taxes. FedEx has had to make some drastic changes because of those contractors who weren't paying their employees properly.

Be real careful. You can get in trouble, and so can she. Another thing I saw at FedEx was that, all too often, someone who's willing to skirt the shady side of things with the IRS will have no problem cheating you, too. Not always, but there's an above average chance.

 

If you get hurt or worse yet disabled you are screwed. If they can't run their business properly they should quit before they screw up someones life,

 

FEDEX is still not going to be treating them as employees. They will be dealing with individual corporations.

 

FedEx shouldn't be treating them as employees, or at all.

I think you may be misunderstanding the issue a little bit, probably because you've been reading what's been improperly reported by the media and intentionally misrepresented by certain groups with political agendas. They're were some contractors in some states that sued FedEx with the help of some political organizations who I won't name to keep on topic. Mostly, the issue was with drivers hired by contractors. The contractors were paying thier drivers on 1099's and then telling them that they were subcontractors when they were really drivers being hired by FedEx contractors.

They WERE being misclassified as contractors and not being payed properly, but NOT by FedEx, but rather the contractors that hired them. You're right that FedEx will not be paying those who were misclassified as contractors as employees now, either. They aren't going to be paying them at all, and they never did pay those guys at all. They were technically NEVER "FedEx Drivers" but rather drivers (employees) for the entity that was contracted to FedEx.

That's why FedEx will now only be dealing with corporations. Now, if you are a FedEx contractor and you have employees, the government wants to know that you'll be properly withholding taxes and paying your drivers. There was more to remaining a FedEx contractor than simply becoming a corporation. There were things that had to be done to insure that if a FedEx contractor wanted to hire employees, the contractor would handle it legally. Putting a guy in a truck you've leased to a company, and telling him exactly what to do and how to do it makes him an employee.

I have a little bit of inside knowledge here because I'm a FedEx contractor. I've been with the company, as a matter of fact, longer than FedEx. Thy bought the company I was leased to. I've been leased to a FedEx company since the mid 90's. Fedex buying us out wasn't any improvement, IMHO. While I do make good money and am home daily, I'm no fan of FedEx. I do defend them somewhat on some issues, but certainly NOT because I'm some sort of cheerleader, but like for things to be reported accurately. There are plenty of things to gig FedEx on legitimately.

Bottom line, as it relates to the original posters comments, There were LOTS of owner/operators leased to FedEx doing exactly what the OP says the woman who is HIS EMPLOYER (NOT someone he's contracting with) to their employees. In FedEx's case, it was enough for the IRS to take notice and enough for a few political groups to convince some contractors to join them expressly for those groups benefit.

Pretty much, if you're driving a truck you don't own, and the owner of the truck is telling you where to go a nd what to do with it, you're NOT legally a contractor, independent contractor, sub-contractor, or any other type of contractor. It matters not that you're employee was reporting your income on a 1099 and not properly withholding taxes, you're an employee, not a contractor.