FedEx ground are all contractors and have to follow all of those rules :oops: When I could deliver. What I wore. What my truck said on the side. Etc.
Piper is right. Your drivers are not contractors no matter what.
You write the work schedule.
You provide hot bags.
You do not negotiate or bid the services.
You set the prices and count the money.
Your drivers (as a group) do not provide this service to multiple businesses.
Don’t kid yourself that you can call the drivers contractors or someday you will get very sideways with the IRS, Wage and Hour, Work Comp and your state un-employment authorities. All it takes is one pissed off former employee (does this thread bring anything to mind?) to bring down the whole house of cards.
The one way around this would be if a group of drivers formed a business, bought cars, hot bags etc etc and negotiated with you and other businesses to provide delivery services. That entity could be a contractor and you could 1099 it but the drivers would then be employees of that business not yours. It is pretty unlikly there would be any savings there unless you only did a small amount of delivery.
Scott t, I went to WVU and you are what is known as a townie. Hunting season is over and spring is here, a bad day fishing is better than a good day at work!!! :lol:
I have been playing with the idea of doing independant contractors… Fed ex is my base for for the idea as well… They do not work for other companies… they must be at work within a specified time… they have quotas to meet… Ie delivery times and uniforms to wear. They are paid per package as I would assume most of our drivers, (delivery charge). They load trucks, becouse they want to not becouse they have to. I do not know about others drivers… but the guys and girls that I work with take deliveries and are really not required to do much else… accept for the one openning driver and the 2 closing drivers… the other 15 people do not so much… maybe fold boxes and catch ovens. But that is only for there orders… so it is realated to the imediate delivery and the money paid per run…
Do a spread sheet that is based on 5% commision and your full delivery charge paid to each driver and see if it is not more proffitable for you and them to do it this way… I think so… and I bet (although I would not want to be the one to set presadence) that It could be with the right about of money, and the right lawyer, proven in court.
I’d be careful about using FedEx as a base for making drivers independent contractors:
http://www.fedexwatch.com/content/pages … ntractors/
http://www.fedexdriverslawsuit.com/
From news yesterday at http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/f … t=hplatest
In the past quarter, FedEx has struggled to find a resolution to labor problems in its FedEx Ground operations. Drivers in the business unit have filed lawsuits against the company, seeking a change in classification away from being independent contractors in order to obtain overtime wages and health-care benefits.
At the end of the second quarter, FedEx executives said the lawsuits could affect the company’s bottom line. More recently, the Internal Revenue Service ordered the company to pay $319 million in back taxes and fines related to how it classifies FedEx Ground workers.
It’s going be be in federal court soon, and based on state rulings FedEx appears to have about a 100% chance of losing.
Tommy, there’s now way you’re going to get through court with it. The IRS rules for classification are very, very clear.
Look at it this way… if it could be done and could be more profitable, why isn’t everybody doing it? Specifically, don’t you think the Big 3 would’ve found the necessary loopholes yet? They have deep pockets to go prove it in court, but yet they haven’t.
Exactly. If it were more profitable (and even possible) to have drivers as independent contractors the big three would have been doing this a long time ago.
I’m sure they have more legal staff that I have ever had people working for me in the past 6 years.
IMO, this whole line of thought is silly. Why make things more complicated than they need to be? Hire drivers, tell them what to do, buy insurance, and charge a delivery fee that at worst covers the cost of doing so. Simple.
The word you may be seeking is thesaurus.
Ha ha ha… That is exactly what I was thinking.
Nick - I commend your articulation. 
FedEx is a messy situation… I was offered a route (for free) and turned it down.