Originally published on Forbes.com.
I find it strange that in this day and age, I can choose to get an abortion, but I can’t choose my own employment classification in a job where I sell my body and its nudity. –
Katie of Independent Entertainer Coalition
The Tax Court is closed due to the government shutdown creating an unprecedented two-week hiatus on Lew Taishoff’s blog. Being blessed with a broader mission than Mr. Taishoff’s I have other sources of inspiration. One that I hadn’t expected to yield a good tax story was the Stormy Daniels twitter feed. Surprise. surprise, surprise. Here it is:
I will be protesting with adult entertainers in Sacramento tomorrow. We oppose the Dynamex decision imposed by the California Supreme Court. State legislators need to give workers a CHOICE. Join me at the Capitol for a press statement and demonstration.
Dynamex Decision
Apparently, the California Supreme Court decision in the case of Dynamex Operations West Inc has wreaked havoc with the business models of what are sometimes euphemistically called Gentlemen’s Clubs. That is where gentlemen go to watch ladies disrobe. Stephanie Clifford (a/k/a Stormy Daniels) is probably the most currently famous practitioner of the art of exotic dancing and she came out with a strong endorsement of the right of entertainers to choose independent contractor status.
She is endorsing a group, for lack of a better term, called the Independent Entertainer Coalition using a single-page website – stripperchoice.com. I’m suspending judgment on the bonafides of IEC.
Grass Roots Or Astroturf?
Here is how IEC is described on the website.
The Independent Entertainer Coalition is the largest established trade group for Exotic Dancers in the United States. Established in 2015 by three exotic dancers from Los Angeles, our organization and its charter have grown to over 2,800 signees nationwide!
Our organization was formed largely in response to the anti-worker movements throughout the country that seek to strip away the worker’s choice of deciding her employment status. Generally initiated by radical zealots, ex-dancers, and ambulance-chasing attorneys, these efforts and their associated lawsuits have stripped exotic dancers of their customary choice and instead enslaved them to the tyranny of employment.
That would imply that IEC should show up on GuideStar, likely as a 501(c)(6) trade organization. IEC also does not show up in a California entity search. IEC does answer its email. Katie responded to my question on that issue.
We are in the process of formally organizing since this is a new development. It’s hard to get traction when the entire State is forcing this on thousands of workers against their will. We want the flexibility of being a contractor!
…determining whether workers should be classified as employees or as independent contractors for purposes of California wage orders, which impose obligations relating to the minimum wages, maximum hours, and a limited number of very basic working conditions (such as minimally required meal and rest breaks) of California employees
Surveying the other coverage of Dynamex, there is a great deal of uncertainty on that issue, so it is understandable that businesses are shifting in order to avoid the exposure that misclassification can cause.
At the end of the day, if the exotic entertainment business (or whatever you might want to call it) lives and dies by whether its main actors are treated as employees or not, it probably deserves to die. The IEC position is:
The Independent Entertainer Coalition has one simple demand.
Allow workers, at least those who work as exotic dancers, to continue the decades-long, accepted, and desirable practice of choosing their own employment classification status.
Let those who want to work under the foolish zealot’s “employee model” do so, and let those who wish to break free from employment slavery preserve their natural right to remain Independent Contractors.
Employee v Independent Contractor has never been elective, and it probably can’t be without upending a lot of things.
Where Was Everybody?
I could not find any reports on the demonstration that Stormy promised to attend.