Joint Employers
With Halloween fast approaching, imagine this nightmarish situation - Can your company be held responsible for the illegal actions of another company? It's possible! There's a rule that says two different companies can be considered "joint employers."
The Joint Employer Rule has been a hot topic lately because the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) tried to change it in 2023. The proposed change would have made it easier to classify two businesses as joint employers. However, in 2024, a federal court blocked this proposal. This brings attention to the importance of understanding the current rule.
Two businesses can be considered joint employers of the same worker if:
- They share control over important job conditions, and
- Both have actual control over one or more key aspects of the worker's employment.
This is important because a joint employer can be held responsible for the other employer's unfair labor practices. The rule also affects whether a business can be liable for the workers of its independent contractors. For laws that apply only to companies with a certain number of employees (like 15 for Title VII or 50 for the Family and Medical Leave Act), the employee counts of joint employers can be combined to meet that requirement.
