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Employees Or Independent Contractors: A Call For Revision Of Maine's Unemployment Compensation "Abc Test", Christopher J. Cotnoir

Maine Law Review

The Maine Employment Security Law governs whether one person performing services for another is an independent contractor or an employee for unemployment tax purposes. It requires many employers to pay unemployment taxes on individuals who, under the usual common law rules governing the employer-employee relationship, are independent contractors. This result, caused partly by the structure of the statute and partly by judicial interpretation, has the effect of discouraging business expansion, limiting entrepreneurial opportunities, and ultimately, hampering statewide economic development. This Comment first provides the historical background of unemployment compensation legislation at the federal and state levels. Employer liability and employee/independent …