Senator Murray Applauds Biden Administration’s Final Worker Classification Rule

Senator Murray led colleagues in comment letter last year applauding Administration’s proposed independent contractor rule

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray, former chair and senior member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), applauded the Department of Labor (DOL)’s Final Rule on Employee or Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The Final Rule issued today rescinds a Trump-era rule for determining employee or independent contractor classification and reinstates the Department of Labor’s (DOL) longstanding economic realities test to ensure that employers don’t misclassify workers and deny them workplace rights, including the full protections under the FLSA that employee classification entails.

“This rule is a victory for millions of employees throughout the country who are currently being misclassified by their employers as independent contractors and denied the full protections of the Fair Labor Standards Act they deserve,” said Senator Murray. “Rolling back the anti-worker Trump-era rule and reverting to a standard that more closely aligns with Congressional intent and Supreme Court jurisprudence is not only important for workers, but it will help level the playing field for businesses who are doing right by their employees and properly classifying their workers.”

Senator Murray has long led efforts in Congress to shield against employee misclassification and protect workers’ rights. Last year, as Chair of the HELP Committee, she led her colleagues in sending a comment letter in support of the new proposed employee and independent contractor classification rule. Murray is a lead sponsor and is fighting to pass the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, which, among other things, would close loopholes that allow employers to misclassify their employees and deny them protections under the law. In 2020, Murray introduced the Worker Flexibility and Small Business Protection Act, a landmark bill that will expand labor laws to protect workers classified as independent contractors and workers at sub-contractors, temporary (temp) agencies, and corporate franchises.

###