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January 12, 2000 11:12 AM, EST

Trucking companies in Illinois can expect beefed-up enforcement of a state law that distinguishes, for unemployment insurance purposes, employees from independent contractors.

The section of the Illinois Unemployment Insurance Act went into effect in August 1995, but the state agency that administers the law chose at first to emphasize education over enforcement. Now, said Joseph Mueller, legal counsel for the state Department of Employment Security, that has changed.

“We made the policy decision that we were not going to aggressively enforce [the law] against businesses until there was agreement on what it required,” Mueller said. “We’ve now resumed our enforcement efforts regarding independent truckers. We’re not releasing the hounds, but our policies do call for audits in certain situations.”

In order for an owner-operator to be considered an independent contractor by the state of Illinois – and thus not be covered by unemployment insurance should he or she be fired – each of the following tests, among others, must be met:

• The owner-operator must own the vehicle or lease it from a third party that has no ties to the trucking company.
• The owner-operator’s schedule must not be set by the motor carrier, though the shipper or receiver can set the time they want freight to arrive.
• The owner-operator must pay all equipment licensing and operating costs.
• The owner-operator must have his or her name and address on the truck as owner.
• Noncompete contracts – agreements not to work for competing carriers – are not allowed.

For the full story, see the Jan. 10 print edition of Transport Topics. .

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