Contractors, Staffing and Contingent Workers

Our team handles the full spectrum of legal issues involving contractors and contingent workers, helping employers proactively address risk and solve problems to keep their organizations running smoothly.

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Our Clients

Employers around the world and across industries are increasingly turning to staffing firms, professional employer organizers (PEOs), employers of record (EORs), workplace platform providers, contractors, and contingent workers for flexibility amid seismic cultural and technological changes. Yet as the options for engaging workers expand, so do the risks relating to joint employer liability and increased enforcement around misclassification in the U.S., EU, and other key jurisdictions.

As the world’s leading employment and labor law firm, Littler represents many of the largest and most well-known staffing firms, professional employer organizations (PEOs), and employee leasing companies—along with the employers who use these services, from innovative startups to Fortune 50 companies.

Experience and Impact

Our team works with senior leaders to guide decision-making from the very start, providing tailored advice through an understanding of each client’s workforce needs and long-term business goals.

With a unique depth of experience and insight into the various options for engaging third-party workers, we help businesses weigh the associated risks and benefits and make informed decisions about workforce solutions. As regulations around independent contractors and contingent workers continue to shift, we also help buyers, providers, and facilitators of flexible workforces remain compliant and avoid liability.

Our Full-Service Capabilities

Whether you have a well-established external workforce program or need to build one from scratch, our team can assist with:

  • Workforce design and implementation

    We work with clients on initial workforce design, including developing contracts and master service agreements, and provide ongoing strategic counsel to maintain the distinction between employees and contractors.

  • Risk assessment

    Our team frequently conducts legal risk assessments of business staffing options, examining issues specific to our clients’ contractual relationships, policies and processes, and the jurisdictions in which they operate.

  • High-profile litigation

    We litigate and consult on some of the most meaningful class-action independent contractor misclassification lawsuits and disputes in virtually every court and administrative, arbitral, and tax venue.

  • Classification audits

    We conduct audits and counsel on worker classification issues to multinational organizations with thousands of workers in industries including healthcare, entertainment, retail, hospitality, manufacturing, energy, and transportation.

  • Staying ahead of staffing law changes

    Through Littler’s Workplace Policy Institute®, we not only track state and federal developments in staffing law, but also actively participate in the process by advocating for management-friendly policies before lawmakers and regulators.

  • Licensing and registration requirements

    We help set up staffing firms, direct placement firms, and PEOs, and regularly advise on state licensing and registration requirements.

  • Global reach

    We advise on even the most complex multijurisdictional staffing issues. Our team manages cross-border staffing projects, including companies bringing on talent from other countries through an EOR or otherwise engaging overseas contractors.

  • “Employers taking advantage of flexible talent across borders and time zones should work with a global legal advisor like Littler to remain compliant with evolving staffing laws and regulations across jurisdictions.”

    Michael R. Gotzler
    Shareholder & Co-Chair, Contractors, Staffing and Contingent Workers Practice Group
    Michael R. Gotzler
    Shareholder & Co-Chair, Contractors, Staffing and Contingent Workers Practice Group
  • “Independent contractors and contingent workers, while immensely valuable, often give rise to a host of thorny legal, cultural, and operational questions for organizations.”

    Rachel Fendell Satinsky
    Shareholder & Co-Chair, Contractors, Staffing and Contingent Workers Practice Group
    Rachel Fendell Satinsky
    Shareholder & Co-Chair, Contractors, Staffing and Contingent Workers Practice Group

Related Focus Areas

Let us know how we can help you navigate your legal issues involving contractors, staffing and contingent workers.

Related Topics