Existing law prescribes comprehensive requirements relating to minimum wages, overtime compensation, and standards for working conditions for the protection of employees. Existing law makes it unlawful for a person or employer to avoid employee status for an individual by voluntarily and knowingly misclassifying that individual as an independent contractor. Existing law also establishes legal presumptions regarding employment status for certain types of workers performing services, and lists various factors for determining proof of independent contractor status for these workers.
Existing law, as established in the case of Dynamex Operations W. v. Superior Court (2018) 4 Cal.5th 903, creates a presumption that a worker who performs services for a hirer is an employee. That case applies a 3-part test, known as the “ABC” test,
to establish that a worker is an independent contractor.
Existing law provides for apprenticeship programs within the Division of Apprenticeship Standards within the Department of Industrial Relations, sponsored by specific entities and employers, and requires the Chief of the Division of Apprenticeship Standards to perform various functions with respect to apprenticeship programs and the welfare of apprentices.
This bill would exempt a small winery or small microbrewery, as defined, that utilizes volunteers who perform part-time labor in exchange for hands-on training, from having these volunteers classified as employees or apprentices.