Free Republic

Republican candidates can win in November if they prioritize important issues. Chief among them are supporting the freelance economy and opposing the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act. The GOP can appeal to disaffected independents and Democrats who feel voiceless without moderating their conservative beliefs. Here in Virginia, freelancers and their allies, alike, are making their voices heard by opposing bad bills. If Republicans want to win, they should join the fight for freelancers now. The Current Status of Freelancing in AmericaFreelancing is pro-family, pro-freedom, pro-free market— the very essence of conservatism. Men and women who freelance better prioritize...

Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) was one of five Senate Democrats withholding support for the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act—until yesterday.While participating in this virtual event, Senator Manchin announced he’s now signing on as a co-sponsor, saying, "I look forward to working with my colleagues, on both sides of the aisle, to move this bill through a legislative process.”What an act of betrayal. Unsurprisingly, another holdout— Senator Angus King (I-ME)—also threw freelancers under the bus last week.Business groups immediately rebuked him. "It is very disappointing that Senator Manchin has chosen to side with union bosses over West Virginia’s workers...

With the rise of gig economy jobs such as driving for Uber and other forms of independent work enabled by the digital era, more than 57 million Americans now work as freelancers in some capacity. But President Biden just endorsed a radical labor law that endangers their livelihood. House Democrats recently reintroduced the PRO Act, which, among many sweeping reforms, would make many commonplace forms of independent contractor (freelance) arrangements illegal. It’s based on a California law that was so dysfunctional even voters in the very blue state voted to change it. “The Administration strongly encourages the House to pass...

Could worker reclassification laws affect the 2020 election? With Americans turning to independent contract work (or “gig work”) in wake of COVID-19, this issue could motivate people to vote. Freelancers across the nation worry the Biden-Harris ticket—should they prevail and get backing from a Democrat-led Senate—would displace 59 million Americans from the workforce.Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) openly support the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO Act). The former vice president tweeted and doubled down support for it on his campaign website, while his running mate signed onto the Senate version as a co-sponsor. But wait, it gets better! Bernie Sanders has expressed interest in being Biden’s...

Some are wondering what Democratic candidate Vice President Joe Biden’s public support for AB-5, a union-backed California law, aimed at preventing the misclassification of rideshare drivers by giving them the status and protections of full-time employees, means for the future of their businesses. AB-5 had to be modified repeatedly after taking effect on Jan. 1, 2020, because it was putting so many other types of freelancers out of work. “They are really worried about it,” says Bothwell. That’s because Biden -- historically a supporter of unions -- wants a federal law similar to AB-5 that could place steep restrictions on...

... AB 5 has sent shock waves through the world of companies that employ freelancers and the independent workers whom they rely on since it passed. The law codifies the ABC test — which helps employers determine who should be classified as a freelancer — giving exemptions to some types of freelancers, such as architects, doctors, insurance agents, lawyers, grant writers, real estate agents, tutors, truck drivers and manicurists. The law, which takes effect Jan.1, 2020, could cost the employers a lot of money. It says the exemptions are retroactive. The California Supreme Court just announced this week it will...

In mid-October, Upwork, a global freelancing platform where businesses and individual freelance workers connect and collaborate online, released the results of a new study on the gig economy, in conjunction with Freelancers Union, titled “Freelancing in America: 2017” — the most comprehensive measure of the U.S. independent workforce. This is the fourth annual study of the 57.3 million American freelance workers, which amounts to 36 percent of the U.S. workforce. This chunk of the world’s top economy contributes around $1.4 trillion per year, an almost 30 percent increase year-over-year, per Upwork’s report. The amazing takeaway from the world’s largest freelancing...

new report shows some 53 million Americans—or 34 percent of the U.S. workforce—are now working as freelancers in some capacity. "This is more than an economic change," asserts the report, a joint effort from the Freelancer's Union and freelance markeplaces oDesk and eLance. It's also "a cultural and social shift" that will "have major impacts on how Americans conceive of and organize their lives, their communities, and their economic power." The first and last time anyone looked at the freelance worker population in the U.S. was 2004, in a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). Back then the GAO...

In an effort to prove that ridiculous hyperbole is not limited to Democrats in Congress, a former Huffington Post contributor has accused founder Arianna Huffington of turning bloggers into “modern day slaves” on her “plantation.” Jonathan Tasini filed a class-action lawsuit against Huffington and AOL, who bought the Huffington Post earlier this year for $315 million. Tasini wants a third of that in damages on behalf of the unpaid contributors to the site: “In my view, the Huffington Post’s bloggers have essentially been turned into modern-day slaves on Arianna Huffington’s plantation,” he said. “She wants to pocket the tens of...

Behind the attempt to regulate the Internet is an attempt at destroying our God given constitutionally guaranteed rights of free speech and an attempt to suppress the spread of opinions, news, and ideas. For the Multi-national corporations and it's leftist CEOs there is a need for greed and to limit our choices they way they do with Television. The chance to monopolize the Internet and the video games industry is met with the support of none other than RINOS as well as the far left. Hillary Clinton, John Mccain and to some extent even Obama have expressed support for regulating...