As employers in the Golden State attempt to prepare for the
brave new world—courtesy of AB 5—that will greet them
on New Year's Day, federal and state courts in California
continue to grapple with the scope and purpose of the 2018 groundbreaking
Dynamex decision. In Dynamex, the
state's highest court adopted the broad "ABC Test" to
determine whether a worker is properly classified as an independent
contractor or as an employee for purposes of California's wage
orders. AB 5 codifies and expands the scope of the Dynamex
holding to state labor law more broadly. In recent days, courts
have issued decisions addressing fundamental questions relating to
the application Dynamex.
Joint Employer Status. On October 8,
2019, the California Appeals Court for the First Appellate District
held that Dynamex is limited in its application to whether
a worker is misclassified as an independent contractor, and is not
intended as a broad test of "joint employment" for
purposes of wage
