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The Fair Labor Standards Act At 80: Everything Old Is New Again, Kati L. Griffith

Cornell Law Review

On the eightieth anniversary of the federal wage and hour statute, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA), critics warn that it cannot keep pace with shifting business trends. More and more individuals engage in "contract work," some of which takes place in the much publicized "gig economy." These work arrangements raise questions about whether these workers are "employees," covered by U.S. labor and employment law, or "independent contractors." Subcontracting arrangements, or what some call domestic outsourcing, are also expanding. Indeed, more and more workers in the U.S. economy engage with multiple businesses, raising questions of which of these …