Executive Order No. 21-9 (No. 08-12) [Governor’s Task Force on Employee Misclassification]
WHEREAS, Vermont law provides that all workers are considered employees unless a worker
is lawfully exempt as an “independent contractor,” and
WHEREAS, when an employee is misclassified as an independent contractor, the employer
potentially violates numerous laws, and
WHEREAS, the misclassification of employees harms Vermont workers by depriving them
of important legal rights, harms Vermont taxpayers and the State’s economy through
the loss of state and federal payroll taxes, and harms employers who abide by the
law by enabling non-compliant business to gain an unfair advantage, and
WHEREAS, Vermont’s laws regarding misclassification must be aggressively enforced
in a coordinated, timely, and consistent manner by all agencies and departments.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that I, Peter Shumlin, by virtue of the authority vested
in me as Governor of the State of Vermont, do hereby create the “Governor’s Task Force
on Employee Misclassification” as set forth below.
I. Composition, Appointments, and Process.
The Task Force shall consist of the following members:
— The Secretary of Administration or designee
— The Commissioner of Labor or designee
— The Commissioner of Financial Regulation or designee
— The Commissioner of Taxes or designee
— The Commissioner of Buildings and General Services or designee
— The Secretary of Transportation or designee
— The Secretary of Human Services or designee
— The Secretary of Commerce or designee
— The Commissioner of Liquor Control or designee
The Task Force may also request the participation of other state officials, including
the Attorney General or designee and the Secretary of State or designee.
The Commissioner of Labor or his or her designee shall chair the Task Force. The
Task Force may elect a deputy chair. The Department of Labor shall provide administrative
support. The Task Force shall meet every two months at the call of the Chair or deputy
chair.
II. Charge.
The Task Force is charged with combating the practice of employee misclassification
and shall report its findings to the Governor on January 15 of each year.
The Task Force shall:
A. Examine and evaluate existing misclassification enforcement by agencies and departments;
B. Develop and implement a campaign to educate and inform employers, workers, and the
general public about misclassification;
C. Coordinate review of existing law and other methods to improve monitoring and enforcement
of misclassification;
D. Review and establish reasonable mechanisms to accept complaints and reports of non-compliance;
E. Review templates for state contracts and grants and monitor systems to ensure compliance
by contractors and grant recipients;
F. Identify barriers to information sharing and recommend statutory changes where necessary;
G. Work collaboratively with businesses, labor, and other interested stakeholders in
the effort to reduce employee misclassification;
H. Ensure that agencies and departments are engaged in timely enforcement and that any
penalties and debarment periods are posted to a publicly available website in a timely
manner, where permitted by law. Additional methods of public notice and information
sharing shall be reviewed and recommended by the Task Force.
I. Engage in other activities as deemed necessary and appropriate by the Task Force,
as permitted by law.
All agencies and departments shall cooperate with the Task Force and furnish information
in a timely fashion. The Task Force is authorized to receive monetary and other assistance
in furtherance of its duties upon approval of the Governor in accordance with law.
The Department of Labor shall be the fiscal recipient of any such funds.
III. Effective Date.
This Executive Order shall take effect upon signing and shall continue in full force
and effect until further order by the Governor.
Dated September 8, 2012.