To contact us Click HERE
Independent contractorsnot entitled to retirement benefits or other fringe benefits
Araneo v Town Bd. for Town of Clarkstown, 55AD3d 516
Michael Araneo was the owner, president, and sole employee of a corporation:Michael Araneo, Inc. In 1970 Araneo began performing work for the Town ofClarkstown at the Town dump and on September 15, 1997, on behalf of thecorporation, signed an agreement with the Town providing that the corporationwould perform certain services at the Town's solid waste facility and otherfacilities.
This contract expressly provided that the corporation and its employees wouldbe acting as independent contractors and were not to be considered employees ofthe Town.
Araneo submitted vouchers to the Town Comptroller for payment and the paymentwas generally made to the corporation. The Town did not withhold taxes orinsurance, and that the corporation paid the requisite taxes and insurance onbehalf of Araneo. In addition, the corporation carried liability insurance,maintained its own offices, and that the Town paid the corporation more than anindividual employee would have been paid for the same work. Further, Araneoused “many of his own tools” in performing his work and “was not instructed onhow to perform the work he did for the Town.”
On January 8, 2002, Araneo sued the Town, for a judgment declaring thateffective July 3, 1978 and through and including January 14, 2005, he was aTown employee entitled to all benefits enjoyed by such employees, including butnot limited to, pension rights, health care, vacation time, sick leave, andpersonal time.
The Appellate Division said that “The determination of whether one is anemployee or an independent contractor requires examination of all aspects ofthe arrangement between the parties,” although "the critical inquiry . . .pertains to the degree of control exercised by the purported employer over theresults produced or the means used to achieve the results." Other elementsinclude “assessing control include whether the worker (1) worked at his ownconvenience, (2) was free to engage in other employment, (3) received fringebenefits, (4) was on the employer's payroll and (5) was on a fixedschedule." Significantly, the court said “the fact that a contract existsdesignating a person as an independent contractor is to be considered, but isnot dispositive.
In this instance, said the court, the record plainly establishes that, at alltimes at issue, Araneo was an independent contractor to the Town and not a Townemployee. Consequently, Araneo was held not to be an employee of the Town ofClarkstown at any time from July 3, 1978, to January 14, 2005.
The full text of the decision is posted on the Internet at:
http://www.courts.state.ny.us/reporter/3dseries/2008/2008_07599.htm
Hiç yorum yok:
Yorum Gönder