A.B. 5 Legislation Likely to Have A Greater Impact on California Employers Than Any Law Enacted in Decades

Governor Gavin Newsom signed A.B. 5 on September 18, 2019. This legislation is expected to have a greater impact on California employers than any law enacted in decades. Every industry using independent contractors, from agriculture to entertainment, could be impacted. Although some lobbying groups succeeded in obtaining qualified exemptions, the vast majority of the several million workers currently classified as independent contractors (ICs), will need to be reclassified. The law also may have repercussions in other states causing them to implement similar legislation.

This Issue Brief covers several key components of A.B. 5, including:

• The Dynamex “ABC test;”
• The Assortment of Carveouts of Worker Categories;
• Retroactive Impact;
• Potential Reclassification; and
• What’s Next.

Dykema’s Labor and Employment attorneys have extensive experience counseling clients regarding worker misclassification, as well as representing them across the nation before federal and state agencies and courts. Our team can assist with effective options to protect employers and mitigate the impact of reclassification.