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<blockquote data-quote="dmac1" data-source="post: 3879024" data-attributes="member: 60252">I filed a form SS-8 with the IRS to challenge the contractor status twice. The first time, amid all the lawsuits, and with fedex paying a fine to settle a claim with the IRS, the IRS answered with a letter stating that &quot;at this time, we decline to issue a ruling&quot;. When I filed again a few years later, it took them 3 years to finally issue a decision in my favor.&nbsp;By the time I got the ruling, it was about 8 years later, and in a practical sense, too late to go back and make any claims outside what the class action claimed. It was really too late to even amend my tax returns, unless I wanted to pay an attorney to prove that I could amend my returns based on the idea that the deadline to amend should be based on the date I originally filed the SS-8In the meantime, fedex has made just enough changes to the contract that someone would need to file a new claim based on the new situation. Basically, it doesn&#039;t take a lot of direct control to make one an employee. And it isn&#039;t just the wording of the contract, it is the reality of what fedex does- vehicle selection, training, equipment supply, like scanners, insurance vendors, gently &quot;urging&quot; use of fedex uniforms, driver approval, requirements on how you must pay employees, etc. For example- if you hire a contractor to build a house, that contractor can subcontract out some or all of the work. Try that with fedex. Just because you agree to it, and it is in the contract doesn&#039;t mean it isn&#039;t a good measure of control.The reason no one has filed a class action yet is due to the realization that it was just not profitable for attorneys after seeing what happened in the last case from 2006. It took 11 years, and then the amount the attorneys settled for was much less than original estimates. Fedex has the resources on a national level, and it has been shown in the prior case that &#039;contractor&#039; status is really a state-by-state situation, with just a minor part of any claim applicable nationwide.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="dmac1, post: 3879024, member: 60252"] I filed a form SS-8 with the IRS to challenge the contractor status twice. The first time, amid all the lawsuits, and with fedex paying a fine to settle a claim with the IRS, the IRS answered with a letter stating that "at this time, we decline to issue a ruling". When I filed again a few years later, it took them 3 years to finally issue a decision in my favor. By the time I got the ruling, it was about 8 years later, and in a practical sense, too late to go back and make any claims outside what the class action claimed. It was really too late to even amend my tax returns, unless I wanted to pay an attorney to prove that I could amend my returns based on the idea that the deadline to amend should be based on the date I originally filed the SS-8 In the meantime, fedex has made just enough changes to the contract that someone would need to file a new claim based on the new situation. Basically, it doesn't take a lot of direct control to make one an employee. And it isn't just the wording of the contract, it is the reality of what fedex does- vehicle selection, training, equipment supply, like scanners, insurance vendors, gently "urging" use of fedex uniforms, driver approval, requirements on how you must pay employees, etc. For example- if you hire a contractor to build a house, that contractor can subcontract out some or all of the work. Try that with fedex. Just because you agree to it, and it is in the contract doesn't mean it isn't a good measure of control. The reason no one has filed a class action yet is due to the realization that it was just not profitable for attorneys after seeing what happened in the last case from 2006. It took 11 years, and then the amount the attorneys settled for was much less than original estimates. Fedex has the resources on a national level, and it has been shown in the prior case that 'contractor' status is really a state-by-state situation, with just a minor part of any claim applicable nationwide. [/QUOTE]

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