NLRB Makes It More Difficult To Classify Workers As Independent Contractors

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) recently issued an order adopting a tougher standard for classifying workers as independent contractors. The test for classifying independent contractors under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) has swayed with the tide of changing presidential administrations over the past decade. On June 13, 2023, the Biden-backed NLRB issued a decision in The Atlanta Opera, Inc. (Atlanta Opera), which overturned the SuperShuttle DFW (SuperShuttle) standard implemented during the Trump administration and reinstated an Obama-era standard established in FedEx Home Delivery (FedEx II). The distinction between independent contractors and employees is critical because the NLRA affords employees — not independent contractors — the right to unionize.