On January 25, 2017, a federal appeals court that covers
Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and North and South Carolina was
the latest to craft a joint employer test, holding that a Maryland
general contractor was the joint employer of its drywall
subcontractor's employees. As a result, the contractor was
responsible for unpaid wages, including overtime, for the sub's
employees.
Faced with facts that were very unfavorable for the contractor,
the court decided that a joint employment relationship between
companies exists when they share or in some way "co-determine
... the essential terms and conditions of a worker's
employment" and if the worker involved is an employee and not
an independent contractor. In doing so, the court relied on Fair
Labor Standards Act regulations, which require examining whether
the two potential employers are "entirely independent"
and "completely disassociated" from each other with
respect to a person's employment. Unfortunately for
