A growing number of app-based online job platforms that place health care workers may be avoiding payroll taxes and other employee-related costs by misclassifying nurses and nurse aides as independent contractors instead of as employees. This practice exposes caregivers and health care facilities to liability and poses competitive and potential reputational harm to the health care staffing industry.
To combat this problem, ASA is spearheading an effort to educate staffing agencies, health care facilities, and health care workers about the risks of misclassification—and to encourage enforcement action to investigate potentially unlawful practices. A new ASA issue paper, written by a top employment law expert and association legal staff, was developed to assist in the education effort. To help bring public attention to the issue, ASA issued a news release today announcing the association’s efforts and publication of the paper.
