We are closing in on 100 days until Election Day. This 2024 election season especially, Americans are looking for a Congress that understands the importance of independent professionals to the American economy and that will take action on our behalf.
Our work as solopreneurs, small businesses, micro-businesses, and independent professionals contributes and fuels the nation’s economic engine. Women own 39.1% (14 million) of U.S. businesses—and an astounding 90% of them are one-woman shops (non-employer) that generate $2.7 trillion. Our economic impact is undeniable and should not be dismissed.
Independent professionals, entrepreneurs, and small business owners thrive on the hustle. As an investigative journalist, writer, and entrepreneur, I have built several ancillary hustles to further my business: I have mounted an investigation into a state’s party committee failings, been contracted to write articles and op-eds, and garnered radio and media appearances about the topics and subjects I cover. What looks like piecemeal work to some, is for me and other independents a part of a larger tapestry. It weaves together to create a brand, intellectual property, and a foundation of excellence. Self-employment provides us the freedom to determine our schedules and work around our unique circumstances.
But our federal government does not see it this way. Instead of affording us the freedom and flexibility to do what we do in the way we do best, Washington would rather impose burdensome regulations and restrictions, like the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)’s Independent Contractor final rule. This rule essentially tells independent professionals that we have no right to be an independent contractor unless we meet a set of arbitrary standards that are seen through a government lens—not the lens of industry. The new rule rests on a totality-of-the-circumstances standard that injects confusion and ambiguity into determining work status, inevitably leading to the loss of that independent status.
Supporters of reclassification do not understand how essential independent contracting is to our livelihoods. This was evident in 2020 in the fight against California’s AB5—a law implementing a restrictive ABC test that reclassified many independent contractors as employees and inspired the DOL’s new rule. One elected state official claimed the independent status being stripped from us was just “taking away our lollipops.” Instead, AB5 hollowed out self-employment, pushed up unemployment, and destroyed many livelihoods in the process.
While California is not in play in this election, Virginia is. Independent professionals are aware of what they will lose if similar policies are nationalized. Military spouse Jamie Wilson was only able to overcome the workforce challenges of moving frequently through independent contracting. “I found a significant amount of reluctance in employers to hire someone whose experience was from a good distance away and who would certainly leave their employment within three years. Perhaps my life doesn’t seem important to politicians and bureaucrats, but remember: spousal happiness has enormous bearing on military retention and morale, and I am far from the only military spouse grateful for the freedom of the gig economy.”
Arizona is also a battleground state, so independent professionals and small businesses within the state are doubly committed to voting for their economic freedoms, and not party orthodoxy. Lain Ehman, a fellow writer and marketing consultant, explained that “I created my own business to suit my wants and my family’s needs… My husband took a new job that required him to relocate out of state for almost two years. During that time, I was able to lower my workload so I could take over all of the parenting duties, as I was a ‘single mom’ for extended periods of time. If I had not had that flexibility, our family would have suffered.”
Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) has stated that he would submit to labor union demands and vote for legislation that restricts independent contracting and economic freedom, showing how little he and his colleagues value the importance of flexibility that independent contracting arrangements provide.
Nevada is a critical electoral state, but the attacks on independent professionals has made independent translator and small business owner Diane Gunn a single-issue voter: “I hate politics and try my best to not get involved in anything. But this was too much. I’ve become a ‘single-issue’ voter as I watched the decimation of the lives of so many in California, literally overnight. I worry for the freelancers here in Nevada.”
This is precisely why efforts in the House and Senate to overturn the DOL rule using the Congressional Review Act were critical. Unfortunately, both Republican and Democrat congressional members failed to back Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-CA) in their repeal efforts—signaling to all independent professionals that Congress doesn’t take them seriously.
The prior DOL rule crafted under the previous administration took seriously not only my industry, my career output, and my contribution to the economy, but it also respected my right to control my own work output and work product. Yet the way Congress legislates requires us to prove time and again that we have a right to work, and have to take time away from our essential contributions to fight against this perpetual disregard and overreach.
Elected officials are respected for the work they do on behalf of the American people. Independent professionals, however, are not accorded the same for our contributions to the economy. Too many lawmakers hold this posture, and it is high time we hold them accountable.