Cucumber Harvesters Are Employees, Not Independent Contractors: Sixth Circuit | Practical Law
In Perez v. D. Howes, LLC, the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that a company's seasonal cucumber harvesters were employees, not independent contractors, and therefore were due unpaid wages and other damages under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The court's short opinion relied on a more detailed district court opinion that granted summary judgment to the US Department of Labor (DOL), applied a six-factor test to conclude that the workers were employees, and distinguished a prior Sixth Circuit case that concluded the same type of workers were independent contractors.