Document Type
Article
Publication Date
4-26-2024
Abstract
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) made it possible for independent contractors to access unemployment benefits, or “Pandemic Unemployment Assistance” (“PUA”), for the first time. This created a new awareness for how many gig-based performing artists were considered independent contractors. In the wake of the PUA program expiration in 2021, the DOL identified 425,000 fraudulent unemployment benefit claims filed, totaling $5.5 billion, during the COVID-19 pandemic. The fraudulent claims were filed using the real identities of individuals who were not employed, which were likely stolen during previous data breaches of banks, insurance companies, and employers. The extension of unemployment benefits and the following fraud claims ignited a renewed interest in independent contractor misclassification at the New York State Insurance Fund (“NYSIF”) and the New York State Department of Labor (“DOL”) in independent contractor misclassification.
This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal website on April 26, 2024. The original post can be accessed via the Archived Link button above.
Recommended Citation
Sigety, Katie, "The Impact of the “Misclassification” of Employees as Independent Contractors on New York City’s Performing Arts Institutions and Gig-Based Performers" (2024). AELJ Blog. 388.
https://larc.cardozo.yu.edu/aelj-blog/388
Included in
Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law Commons, Intellectual Property Law Commons, Legal Education Commons
