« Abuse Resistant Belts work where others fail.
« Super Strong Joints are virtually unbreakable.
« High Tension Belts move heavier loads.
« Super Red Belts double capacity.
Dura-Belt 800-770-2358 614-777-0295 Fax: 614-777-9448 www.durabelt.com
Better than
Lifetime
Warranty
Longer Lasting Belts
New Split Line-shaft Spools
l High precision. Reasonable price.
l Easy to install. Zero downtime.
l Can be locked to shaft. Eliminates
need for keyed spools and shafts.
We use 100% virgin
urethane (no regrind
waste). Makes stronger,
longer lasting belts.
Longer lasting Belts, New Split Spools -- no regrind:Layout 1 8/26/2009 4: 37 AM Page 1
ment in California governing the relationship between FedEx and the approximately
2,300 individuals who made up the class
of plaintiffs gave FedEx “a broad right to
control the manner in which its drivers
perform their work.” Citing “powerful evidence” of company control over the drivers,
Judge Fletcher ruled that they qualified
as employees under California’s “
right-to-control” test. The individuals worked full
time for FedEx Ground in the state from
2000 to 2007.
The judge also noted comments by a
number of drivers that they had believed
they would be granted “entrepreneurial
opportunities” under the relationship, but
discovered that they were limited in what
they could do beyond what the company
had expressly stipulated.
In a statement, FedEx said it would appeal
the panel’s ruling and seek review from the
entire Ninth Circuit. The company also said
the panel rendered a decision on a model
that is no longer in use. Since 2011, it said,
FedEx Ground has only contracted with
incorporated businesses that treat their
drivers as their employees. Over the years
FedEx has “significantly strengthened” the
operating agreement that served as the basis
for the panel’s adverse ruling, the company
added.
FedEx said in the statement that it will
shift to new independent service-provider
(ISP) agreements in California, Oregon,
Washington, and Nevada, four of the states
where the Ninth Circuit holds jurisdiction.
Such agreements typically involve larger
geographic service areas from which contractors can operate, according to Patrick
Fitzgerald, a FedEx spokesman. FedEx
operates through an ISP in 17 states; the
company plans to provide details on the
extended agreement in October, Fitzgerald
said.
When FedEx acquired Caliber Systems,
the parent of then-rival Roadway Package
System Inc. (RPS) in 1998, it also assumed
the independent-contractor model that
RPS implemented when it began business
in 1985. Since then, the model has survived
various legal challenges. The most notable
was a long-running battle with the Internal
Revenue Service (IRS) over the employ-
ment classification of employees
at FedEx Ground, the rebranded
RPS unit. The IRS, which argued
that FedEx Ground workers were
company employees and entitled to
benefits they were not eligible for
as contractors, eventually dropped
various tax assessments against
FedEx dating back to 2002.
Aaron Kaufmann, an attorney for
the California plaintiffs, acknowl-
edged that FedEx Ground has made
changes to its contractor model over
the years. However, the changes
may not be substantial enough to
persuade the courts that its driv-
ers are truly independent contrac-
tors, he said. “If they drive vans
with FedEx’s logo on it, wear FedEx
uniforms, and deliver exclusively
FedEx packages, then I would ques-
tion it,” he said.
In a statement, Beth Ross, the
lead plaintiffs’ attorney, said FedEx’s
current model in California is struc-
tured around working with con-
tractors who then hire a “secondary
work force” of drivers who essen-
tially do the same work as the plain-
tiffs, and under the same contract.
Ross said that she’s heard of many
instances where the so-called sec-
ondary drivers are earning such low
wages that they must rely on public
assistance to make ends meet.
—M.S.
