Many companies with manufacturing or processing facilities outsource their day-to-day maintenance and repair work to independent contractors. These contractors typically employ dozens, if not hundreds, of workers in various industrial crafts who report to work each day at the company’s facility. In this type of integrated, on-site workforce, it’s important for company lawyers to educate management and workers about the legal implications of day-to-day interactions between employees and independent contractors.
One critical issue that emerges concerns the extent to which a company can direct the work practices of the independent contractors’ employees without creating unwanted legal duties for the company and, potentially, unanticipated liability. The company and its employees need to tell the contract workers what to do for those contractors to do the work. But at what point do a company’s directions trigger legal duties? Here’s some basic background an in-house or outside counsel for a company can use when educating company managers and other employees, plus some basic work practices a company can employ without creating unwanted liabilities.
