Legal Protections for Atypical Employees: Employment Law for Workers without Workplaces and Employees without Employers

Abstract

In the United States, the decentralization of production has fostered the growth of many types of atypical employment, most notably temporary employment, homework, and dependent independent contractors. The labor and employment laws in the U.S. were designed for long-term employees, so that criteria for eligibility and schedules of benefits assume an on-going employment relationship with a single employer. As the numbers of atypical employees grows, more and more individuals find themselves lacking basic protection for minimum wage, health and safety, retirement security, industrial injury, and collective bargaining rights. This article surveys major U.S. employment laws to demonstrate that temporary workers, homeworkers, and independent contractors face practical as well as legal barriers that prevent them from getting full coverage under existing labor and employment laws.