Quote:
Originally Posted by Camron Rust
Employee vs. independent contractor. We're a vendor to the school...actually several schools. Not really that much different than a plumber or other repair person. That makes it more upon us to meet the requirements of the job. If we were employees, then I'd expect them to pay for it. When I hire a vendor (it could even be a company with employees), I expect their certifications to tell me all I need to know about them and I shouldn't be expected to do a background check on their employees. I expect them to have already done so. That is what is happening here...the schools are contracting out the job of officiating and expect to hire an outside service (each of you are a company of one) to provide that can just show up and work, having met all the necessary qualifications.
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Given that the official is an independent contractor, there is no employer who is entitled to conduct a background check. In my area, the officials are also not employees of the local association, so even the association can't do them.
So this is not akin to a plumbing company being hired by the schools to perform work. Yet even if it were, the different companies could decide on their own whether to conduct checks and the schools could then select which company to do business with. Since there is only one association in my area, there is no competitor. Thus the schools can either deal with us or go find officials on their own. They have opted to contract with the association, and since the business is done through a contract, all the officials group has to do is not agree to put a background check provision in the contract.