Best Business Practices for Photographers [43]
To determine whether an individual is a contractor or an employee, all factors must be applied. A fair evaluation would be that if a majority of the 20 factors carry a yes response, then an individual might be considered an employee. If you believe a person working for you should be considered an employee, you must either handle that person as such or make appropriate changes to resolve the situation to achieve an independent contractor status for all individuals providing services to you.
Following are the IRS factors from their website, as outlined in their Revenue Ruling 87-41, and my responses to each:
Factor 1: Instructions. Is the worker required to comply with the employer's instructions? A worker who is required to comply with other persons' instructions about when, where, and how he is to work is ordinarily an employee. This control factor is present if the person for whom the services are performed has the right to require compliance with instructions.
Response. Contractors working for me are given projects and tasks to complete as a part of their responsibilities. Contractors are given significant leeway as to how they wish to complete tasks and when those tasks are to be completed. In instances when tasks are time sensitive (sending out an estimate or reprint order or calling a courier), contractors understand that delays could cause a loss of a photo assignment. However, no requirements such as "within 10 minutes" or "within 20 minutes" are placed on contractors.
Factor 2: Training. Is the worker required to receive training from the employer? Training a worker by requiring an experienced individual to work with him, by requiring the worker to attend meetings, or by using other methods indicates that the services are to be performed in a particular method or manner.
Response. Contractors are required to have a basic understanding of photography and computers. Contractors are expected to apply their knowledge of photography when assisting me on location at photo shoots. The role of contractor-assistant is not expected to grow into a position in which the contractor becomes an experienced photographer working for me shooting. Where contractors are not knowledgeable in specific applications (Photoshop, QuickBooks, and so on), the contractor is not trained by attending classes paid for or directed by me; rather, these skills are to be learned on the contractor's own time.
Factor 3: Integration. Does the worker provide services that are integrated into the business? Integration of the worker's services into the business operations generally shows that the worker is subject to direction and control. When the success or continuation of a business depends on the performance of certain services, the workers who perform those services are generally subject to a certain amount of control by the owner of the business.
Response. The services provided by contractors are not integrated into the business, but rather, they are of a supportive position to the business.
Factor 4: Services Rendered Personally . Must the worker personally perform the services? If the services must be rendered personally, an employer/employee relationship is assumed.
Response. Contractors for me may contact other authorized contractors to perform the services if the contractor scheduled for coverage has other obligations for other clients. This happens often when a contractor has another job they can take, and they then make the substitution with another contractor. In some cases, the contractor simply does not come in without sending a replacement, at their option, if they assess there is no time-sensitive need. Contractors have a responsibility to know whether they have time-sensitive tasks