- ‘Legal tradition’ is to apply judicial decisions retroactively
- Applying ABC test to pending cases serves wage law’s goals
Posted May 2, 2019, 12:44 PM
A California Supreme Court ruling that created a strict standard for determining who is an “employee” applies retroactively, the Ninth Circuit held May 2 in a ruling expected to have a wide reach.
The decision means a legal test created last year by the California Supreme Court in Dynamex Operations West, Inc. v. Superior Court-making it harder for companies to classify workers as independent contractors-will be applied to cases going forward, as well as to disputes dating back to before the new test was enacted. Formal “employee” status comes with additional rights and benefits to workers.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit’s opinion has major implications for California employers that rely on independent contractors, including gig economy companies like Uber Technologies and Postmates, and could even compel some businesses to simply reclassify contractors as employees and change pay and benefits. …