Fedex Overtime Attorneys

Independent Contractor or Employee? What it all Means

The crux of the issue between Fedex and its drivers that has been saturating the news and court dockets around the country lately centers on one central question: Are Fedex drivers employees or independent contractors? This is a question whose answer carries significant consequences for the party that loses this debate, and below we'll examine the details of this dichotomy in an attempt to help our readers understand why courts and administrative law judges thus far have been siding with drivers as opposed to Fedex in regards to this classification.

Issue One: Control

The first issue to consider when analyzing the Fedex situation is control. What this means in real, everyday applications is how much say a driver has in regards to how he or she manages his or her daily routine. For instance, a "true" contractor generally decides when he or she will work, how he or she will perform that work and in which order that work will be done. There are exceptions to this general rule, of course, but that's one part of the legal standard that's considered.

Issue Two: Application to Fedex

When one applies the "control" standard to the Fedex delivery drivers, it becomes clear to this writer, and to most judges who have already heard the case, that they are in fact employees as opposed to independent contractors. There are simply too many aspects of this job that are strictly controlled by the company to conclude otherwise.

For instance, the Fedex drivers are told when to report to work every day. They are also told how and in what order to make their deliveries. They are expected to follow the general rules and procedures that are required of workers who are classified as employees by Fedex. Finally, they are required to display the Fedex logo on their delivery trucks, which the drivers pay for, and they are required to wear the standard issued Fedex delivery uniform.

Basically, that's a lot of control for a worker who is supposedly an independent contractor, and that's exactly how decision-makers are seeing it so far when these cases have been presented to different courts for a decision.

Overall

If you have suffered as result of being classified as an independent contractor as opposed to an employee as a Fedex delivery driver, you need to contact the Fedex overtime attorneys at Pulaski & Middleman to schedule a free initial consultation so that you can get all the answers as they relate to your individual situation.