“Yesterday’s hearing by the Senate HELP Committee focused almost entirely on making it easier for current employees to unionize, while failing to recognize how parts of the PRO Act would harm the country’s 59 million independent contractors…” Read more…
Press and Releases
Creators of Fight For Freelancers USA Honored with Exceptional Service Award
“The American Society of Journalists and Authors presented its Exceptional Service Award—a special honor given only periodically—to Debbie Abrams Kaplan, Kim Kavin, Jen Singer and Karon Warren, co-leaders of the the nonpartisan, grassroots, self-funded, ad hoc coalition Fight For Freelancers USA.” … Read more …
Alaskans don’t want California’s failed policies
As published in the Anchorage Daily News: “When Alaskans learned more about how the PRO Act would drastically alter current federal labor laws and significantly affect who was able to be an independent contractor in Alaska, more than 60% of Alaskans opposed the bill. This was true even among current union members who opposed the PRO Act by 57% after learning about its provisions. What’s more, 85% of Alaskans agreed that it was important they be able to choose to work as independent contractors. More than 80% believe federal laws should continue to protect the rights of Alaskans to work as independent contractors.” … Read more…
Lawmakers risk repeating a disaster with the PRO Act
As published in the Florida Times-Union: “Will history repeat itself, or will Congress learn from the mistakes of California’s experiment and avoid pushing the same bad policies on the tens of millions of Americans who earn a living from independent contracting? Americans must be allowed to work the way they want. We should expand worker freedom, not shrink it. PRO Act advocates don’t see it that way.” … Read more…
Protecting Right to Organize Act Hurts Local Businesses, Workers
As published in The Roanoke Times: “Importing a concerning California policy to determine whether a worker counts as an employee or independent contractor, the PRO Act would make it significantly harder for those in Virginia currently operating as independent contractors to maintain that status. That means many people could lose the freedom and flexibility that comes with independent or gig economy work, including the ability to set their own hours, choose what work they do, and determine how they would like to perform that work.” … Read more…
Four ‘gig work’ misconceptions driving counterproductive reforms
As published in The Hill: “It’s a mistake to assume – as many policymakers appear to be doing – that the gig economy represents most independent workers and to ignore the diversity of roles, industries and challenges across this growing workforce. Contrary to click-bait headlines, workers on typical “gig” or “on-demand” platforms as a main job comprise only a tiny fraction of the overall independent workforce. It includes a diversity of roles including freelance creatives (musicians, writers) and professionals (translators, software developers); high-skilled consultants; contractors such as electricians and carpenters; and over 120 other types of solo, self-employed roles.” … Read more…
Don’t California my Arizona livelihood
As published in the Arizona Capitol Times: “If the PRO Act passes, the rest of the country would be forced into something even Californians have recognized was a bad idea. The PRO Act is a solution in search of a problem. Independent workers and freelancers are not asking to be full-time employees. When they were reclassified as such in California, they overwhelmingly voted to opt out and create a third way that preserved their independence and flexibility. Let’s heed their example and don’t ‘California’ the rest of the nation.” … Read more…
Gig economy has been lifesaver for women — let’s not force them into traditional workforce
As published by ROI-NJ: “Although these workers overwhelmingly wish to remain independent, there continues to be a push to force gig workers into traditional employment — a move that would come with unforeseen consequences, likely stripping away the flexibility valued most by so many.” … Read more…
PRO Act Threatens West Virginia’s Entrepreneurial Spirit
As published in The Intelligencer: “As the wife of a union member (my husband has been a UBC member for 25 years), I fully support the right to organize and the need to protect workers from exploitation. However, the ABC Test doesn’t distinguish between an exploited worker and a successful small business owner like me. Instead, it says that anyone who works in the same field as the company that hires them would have to be classified as an employee — which most of us do not want. In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 79% of independent contractors prefer their arrangement over a traditional job.” … Read more…
PRO Act’s ABC Test may threaten Houston economy
As published in the Houston Business Journal: “One study shows Houston’s community of skilled freelance workers is among the biggest in the U.S. In Fiverr’s 2019 Freelance Economic Impact Report, Houston’s skilled freelancers generated more than $5.7 billion in revenue. The PRO Act is part of a plan that would put a major dent in that.” … Read more…
