1099 Wrongful Termination/Wrongful use of 1099 status?

[talesien]

Ohio

Thank you in advance for taking the time to read this and respond.

I find myself in an unbelievably strange situation. For the past 10 years I have been self employed. Recently I accepted a remote position with a California based company. During the interview process I spoke with the owner, and several team members. All of them stressed the point that this was a "Get the job done" position, with the inherent flexibility that comes along with that. This was exactly what I was looking for in a new job. As a matter of fact, during my interview the owner said he is not a micromanager and just expected that the job get done - he didn't really care how or when. This was also relayed to me by every team member that I spoke to.

Upon taking this position I was told that my initial 90 days would be on a 1099 status, and that I would have to send invoices for my hours worked. Weird, but hey - I've been out of the employee force for a long time. So I rolled with it. Today was my first day. 3 hours in I get a message of Slack from the owner of the company asking me how I'm acclimating. I tell him I'm doing well, and he asked me if I was scheduled for chat support yet (which I knew was an expectation). I told him I was not, and he asked me when my normal start of the day was. I told him that normally around 8am, however for the next week or so it would be around noon, and I would be working later in the evenings. (I coach HS football, and we are in 2-a-days).

Long story short, he lost his mind, and terminated me.

My questions are as follows:

1. As a 1099 contractor for my first 90 days, he cannot proscribe my working hours, can he? If not, do I have some sort of wrongful termination suit available to me?

2. Part of the condition for extending me an offer was that I close my business and dedicate my professional life full time to this job. I closed my business. Then he terminates me. Do I have any kind of case in that regard?

Keep in mind - there is no employee handbook, no policies, and every single member of the team had the same understanding regarding the flexibility of the position.

 

[HRZ]

Unless you can find written back up that your services were contracted for a specific time frame you are on weak ground ...but that said you were not an employee per the firm but somebody contracted for 90 days of whatever ...and performance counts a lot even if contract was a bit vague as to other things . They could have fired an at will employee 90 minutes late...but that's not the deal . Now the legal costs of a breach of contract issue may be a killer ...but discuss it with counsel in the jurisdiction for the contract...most likely CA?

 

[Whoops2u]

1. As a 1099 contractor for my first 90 days, he cannot proscribe my working hours, can he? If not, do I have some sort of wrongful termination suit available to me?

2. Part of the condition for extending me an offer was that I close my business and dedicate my professional life full time to this job. I closed my business. Then he terminates me. Do I have any kind of case in that regard?

I think the proper state would be California. While you live in Ohio, your question has to do with CA. (Edit: now that I think about it, some of the contract issues might give Ohio jurisdiction also. At least if that was where the contract was made.)

1. He can set reasonable conditions on your working hours. If I hire a housekeeping service, telling them to do their thing when I'm not there is not going to be enough control to make them employees. If you are a "1099 contractor" then terminating you before the end of the contract is not wrongful termination but a breach of contract. If you are an employee, then they can fire you for most any reason without it being wrongful termination. I'm sure there will be those who know more than I who can give examples of what can potentially be wrongful. I don't see anything in your situation that would fit.

2. Maybe. Some of it would depend on many more facts about the specifics of things. But, the bottom line is that you would need some kind of representation the "job"/work would last a certain time to make a contract for that amount of time. Reasonable reliance on a promise that causes you damages can sometimes be sued on as well. (Quasi-contract) I don't see the facts really being in your favor for that either. Sorry.

 

[talesien]

Thanks for the replies. I was afraid that might be the case, but I was hoping it wouldn't be.

 

[cbg]

There are a number of factors that go into determining whether you are an employee or an IC. Setting a schedule is only one of those factors, and there is no single factor that defines it. So no, it is not true that as a 1099 IC, he cannot proscribe your hours.