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What are Independent Contractors?
If you enter into a contract to perform specific work for an employer, and you perform the work according to your own process and outside the daily control of the employer, you are an independent contractor. Independent contractors are not considered employees; they are self-employed, and do not receive most of the rights and benefits that employees receive from employers or by virtue of federal and state employment laws, particularly the Fair Labor Standards Act. However, civil rights law does apply to independent contractors in their relationship to employers. If you are an independent contractor, you may be called freelancer or consultant.
Unlike an employee, if you are an independent contractor, you negotiate with each employer the terms of your work assignment, and you are considered the owner of your work. For example, if you are a writer working as an independent contractor, you retain the copyright to your work even after delivering it to the employer, unless you explicitly sign away the copyright.
As an independent contractor, you will be paid according to the terms of your agreement, not according to the regularly scheduled payroll. You are responsible for paying all applicable federal, state and local taxes from the income you receive. One of the biggest problems independent contractors face is getting paid.
How do I know if I am an Independent Contractor?
I think I need help with an independent contractor problem
