The Rage is Real

A popular YouTuber is fired up about freelance busting. Here are ideas for his listeners, and for us all, that could make a real difference right now.

Quite a few people sent me this link over the weekend. It’s a 17-minute clip of YouTuber Tim Pool becoming, well, angry as all get out as he tells his 2 million-strong audience about his plans to leave the state of West Virginia.

The source of his outrage is what he describes as changes to independent-contractor policy that are making it impossible for him to continue doing business in the state.

In watching this video, I was reminded of a few things:

• People who are new to explaining the independent-contractor policy issue can get some of the details wrong, while getting the big-picture concept right.

• When the proverbial lightbulb goes off and people realize what freelance busting really is, their outrage is immediate and overwhelming.

• It’s heartbreaking to see people trying to run or hide from the freelance-busting brigade by moving to another state, given that the attacks on self-employment are now nationwide, and it’s going to take an act of Congress to stop them.

Pool describes what sounds like regulatory action he’s facing from the State of West Virginia because of a new law defining who can, and cannot, legally earn income as independent contractors there.

As best as I can tell, he’s referring to a 2021 law called the West Virginia Employment Law Workers Classification Act. He compares this law to California’s Assembly Bill 5, which has been documented as utterly destructive to self-employed people’s incomes and careers in more than 600 professions.

It appears to me that the West Virginia law uses a different standard than AB5 to determine independent-contractor status, but based on what Pool describes, he’s feeling unfairly targeted just the same—exactly how independent contractors in California say they feel as they continue to fight AB5 to this day, and exactly how independent contractors nationwide continue to tell government officials we feel about freelance busting of all stripes.

Given the number of followers that Pool has, I think it’s great that he used his platform to shine a light on what’s been happening in this policy area overall. It’s important for Americans to understand that our freedom to choose self-employment is being threatened, and that we need to be on alert for any indications of problems.

Here are some steps that we all can take to make a real difference in the coming weeks and months, all across the country.

Call These Senators

The next big action we’re expecting on independent-contractor policy is the confirmation hearing in the U.S. Senate for Lori Chavez-DeRemer, who is President Trump’s nominee to become the next Secretary of Labor.

Chavez-DeRemer was a surprising choice for this role, given her past positions in opposition to independent contractors. Those positions put her at odds with most Republicans, who have long been champions of our freedom to go into business as our own bosses.

So far, there’s no date set for this hearing, but it’s expected to be held soon before the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy—a staunch defender of independent contractors—is the committee chairman. Other committee members can be found here.

This is an excellent time to contact every member of the U.S. Senate HELP Committee. Tell them we all want a Secretary of Labor who will respect, protect and defend our freedom to choose self-employment.

Senators must use the upcoming confirmation hearing to ensure that Chavez-DeRemer will stand on the side of entrepreneurs all across the country. The Secretary of Labor is supposed to represent the whole workforce, including independent contractors.

Contact President Trump

Also in the mix right now are numerous lawsuits (I’m a plaintiff in this one) involving the U.S. Labor Department and an independent-contractor rule that was put into place during the Biden-Harris administration.

The Biden-Harris rule replaced a rule that President Trump imposed during his first term, with his Labor Secretary explaining back then how the Trump administration wanted to protect independent contractors.

It’s currently an open question whether Trump will attempt to revert to his previous rule. Another possibility is that a federal court in any of the pending cases could strike down the current rule that Biden-Harris imposed.

The upshot is that the Trump administration needs to hear from us all that we want our freedom to be self-employed prioritized. The White House must return as quickly as possible to standing on the side of America’s entrepreneurs.

Call Your Congressman

What’s really needed to stop all this madness once and for all is federal legislation passed by Congress.

It’s unclear at this time whether the new, Republican-controlled Congress has plans to advance such legislation in the current term. However, Republicans have long been proposing bills such as the Modern Worker Empowerment Act to try and protect everyone’s freedom to earn a living as our own bosses.

Now is a good time to let your representative know that you would like to see Congress make this type of bill the law of the land.

You can find your member of Congress by typing in your address here. Call or email to say that you want protecting independent contractors to be on the list of priorities for the current legislative session.

In Minnesota, Be Alert

At the state level, there’s action in a few places, but Minnesota appears to be gearing up for the next big battle over independent-contractor policy.

I recently published this extensive Q&A with the lone freelancer who was a member of the Minnesota task force looking at this issue. Suffice it to say the freelance-busting brigade is following a lot of the same playbook they tried in California and other locations—a playbook whose only documented result is harming the incomes and careers of independent contractors.

If you live and vote in Minnesota, contact your state-level lawmakers. Tell them to protect everyone’s freedom to be self-employed.

Generally Speaking, Be Loud

Tim Pool has the right idea about raising his voice as loudly as possible, even if the policy specifics can be hairy to discuss in detail. Public outrage about attacks on self-employment continues to be the strongest weapon we have against the freelance-busting brigade. They thrive in bureaucratic darkness. Shining a light on their antics is a powerful way to stop them.

That point was made last week on the Labor Relations Radio podcast, when Ed Egee of the National Retail Federation said this:

“The freelancer community, which is very active on Twitter and Facebook, they are very loud. They are excellent advocates for their own position. They and us are going to have to be very vigilant.”

He’s right. Pay attention to what’s going on at the state and federal levels alike.

And keep making noise, as loudly as you can, about freelance busting being wrong.