Jeremy Solomons writes on the problems occasioned by the very nature of independent contractors. He characterises them as loners who resist group involvement and action, allowing manipulative employers to divide and rule.
	Independent contractors face abuse and exploitation

	Independent contractors face abuse and exploitation
	Imagine being in a long-term, personal relationship with someone, who claims commitment to you and yet only comes to you when you are of use, pursues competing liaisons with other people and then makes you sign a binding contract that prevents you from becoming involved with anyone else for a year if you break up.
	It may sound farfetched in a personal relationship but it is exactly what is happening to many independent contractors (ICs) around the country and Santa Fe, in particular.
	It is one thing when ICs are willingly trading off job security and stability for personal freedom but quite another when workers with families and other commitments are being forced into a vulnerable position as an IC because the stable, full-time jobs are just not available.
	And even for those ICs who do contract work by choice, do they deserve to be exploited in this way?

 

	Do ICs deserve to be exploited in this way?
	As in an abusive marriage, the answer to this question lies with the individual and her or his personal character and circumstances.
	No one deserves to be maltreated but sometimes the benefits of a decent hourly or daily fee income, a flexible schedule and the ability to say "no" once in a while can outweigh minor abuses, such as slightly delayed payments, last-minute cancellations and implicit threats to award contracts elsewhere.
	But as with spousal and other forms of abuse, there is often a pattern of escalation whereby the abuser takes advantage of small concessions to take greater liberties in the future.
	At some point, the abuse has to stop and sooner rather than later.
	So how can an IC halt the abuse and regain some control?

 

 

	How can an IC halt the abuse and regain some control?
	Ideally, the IC can consult and formulate bargaining positions with other ICs working for the same employer; with ICs who have worked in the same situation or a similar one; and with professional advisors, such as a contract lawyer or a small business center.
	In that way, they can get the input, clarity and support they need to present a united - or at least a well-informed - front to the employer, (re)state their demands and reclaim some of their eroded financial and professional position.
	But many ICs are by their very nature loners, who resist group involvement and action, allowing manipulative employers to divide and rule.
	And so, many ICs - like battered spouses - are left with two unpleasant choices: the first is to "grin and bear it" in the hope that things don't get worse ... but they often do...

 

 

	...or just hope that things don't get worse ... but they often do
	Alternatively the independent contractor can think about taking an individual stand, which does not carry as much weight as group action and runs the risk of the employer saying to her- or himself: "X is a great worker and I really value what X does but I do not have room for competent consciences and it's maybe time to get some fresh blood."
	And as the French writer Voltaire wrote somewhat cynically in his famous picaresque novel "Candide", you occasionally have to sacrifice a few people to "encourage the others."
	Jeremy Solomons...

 

 

 

Jeremy Solomons is a Texas-based independent consultant on international business and career-life planning issues. He has worked for six multinational organizations, including JP Morgan, Reuters News Agency and the World Bank. He can be contacted by e-mail at jersol@aol.com   Jeremy also writes for the choice facing independent contractors. Is that choice simply to say 'yes' or not work?  Workers have choices in defending their rights