I currently work as an independent contractor for a medical testing company, picking up and delivering medical specimens to the labs. Recently the funding was cut and our hours slashed. I receive $13 per hour over 4-hour shifts (plus a fuel surcharge).
However, the company is asking us to make ourselves available for on-call work in four hour shifts several days a week, without any compensation except for what we may make when we must do a delivery (to date, I have yet to be called for any work during an on-call shift). Basically we are expected to sit around and be ready to respond on a moment's notice, in order to make a delivery within an hour of being called, but there is no compensation for it and no guarantee of work.
Is this legal? We never signed anything in the contract regarding this, in fact most of the agreement has been purely verbal. The company is just making it a requirement of the job (or we may be let go).
However, the company is asking us to make ourselves available for on-call work in four hour shifts several days a week, without any compensation except for what we may make when we must do a delivery (to date, I have yet to be called for any work during an on-call shift). Basically we are expected to sit around and be ready to respond on a moment's notice, in order to make a delivery within an hour of being called, but there is no compensation for it and no guarantee of work.
Is this legal? We never signed anything in the contract regarding this, in fact most of the agreement has been purely verbal. The company is just making it a requirement of the job (or we may be let go).
