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Independent Contractor Subcontractor & Workers Comp Laws

Read­ing Time: 7 min­utes

Last Updat­ed on June 19, 2023 

Are you an Inde­pen­dent or a Sub­con­trac­tor con­cerned about Work­ers Comp pro­tec­tion? Get Legal Help! Call Now for a FREE Con­sult with an Expe­ri­enced Work­ers Comp Lawyer at 844–682‑0999.

How Do Independent Contractor & Workers Comp Laws Work for Your State?

Is an Independent Contractor Covered by Workers Comp Insurance? 

No, inde­pen­dent con­trac­tors are not cov­ered by work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion insur­ance. Work­ers’ com­pen­sa­tion insur­ance is for employ­ers to cov­er the med­ical costs and lost wages of employ­ees who are injured or become ill on the job. Inde­pen­dent con­trac­tors are not con­sid­ered employ­ees and are not eli­gi­ble for the same ben­e­fits and pro­tec­tions as employees.

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What are 20 different ways an Independent Contractor is Different from Employee? 

  1. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is paid on a project basis, while an employ­ee is typ­i­cal­ly placed on a salary or hourly wage.
  2. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is not sub­ject to the same tax with­hold­ing oblig­a­tions as an employee.
  3. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor can be hired for a spe­cif­ic project, while an employ­ee is typ­i­cal­ly hired to com­plete ongo­ing tasks.
  4. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is not eli­gi­ble for employ­ee ben­e­fits such as health insur­ance, paid vaca­tion, and retire­ment plans.
  5. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is not sub­ject to the same labor laws as an employee.
  6. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is typ­i­cal­ly paid for the ser­vices pro­vid­ed, while an employ­ee is typ­i­cal­ly paid for the hours worked.
  7. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor can choose when and where they work, while an employ­ee is typ­i­cal­ly required to work dur­ing spe­cif­ic hours and in a cer­tain location.
  8. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor can work for mul­ti­ple clients, while an employ­ee typ­i­cal­ly works for one employer.
  9. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is respon­si­ble for their own tax­es and busi­ness expens­es, while an employ­ee is typ­i­cal­ly not respon­si­ble for any busi­ness expenses.
  10. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is typ­i­cal­ly not eli­gi­ble for unem­ploy­ment ben­e­fits, while an employ­ee is typ­i­cal­ly eli­gi­ble for unem­ploy­ment benefits.
  11. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor has the abil­i­ty to set their own rates, while an employ­ee typ­i­cal­ly earns an agreed upon rate.
  12. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is respon­si­ble for their own lia­bil­i­ty insur­ance, while an employ­ee is typ­i­cal­ly cov­ered by the employer’s lia­bil­i­ty insurance.
  13. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is not sub­ject to the same safe­ty reg­u­la­tions as an employee.
  14. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor can choose the type of projects they work on, while an employ­ee typ­i­cal­ly has to abide by their employer’s rules.
  15. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor can work for mul­ti­ple clients at the same time, while an employ­ee typ­i­cal­ly works for one employ­er at a time.
  16. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor can work from any loca­tion, while an employ­ee is typ­i­cal­ly restrict­ed to a sin­gle location.
  17. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor can choose how much and when they work, while an employ­ee typ­i­cal­ly has to abide by their employer’s hours.
  18. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor can choose the ser­vices they offer, while an employ­ee typ­i­cal­ly per­forms the tasks assigned to them.
  19. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is not eli­gi­ble for the same legal pro­tec­tions as an employee.
  20. An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is not eli­gi­ble for over­time pay, while an employ­ee is typ­i­cal­ly eli­gi­ble for over­time pay.

What is the difference between Independent Contractor and Sub-Contractor? 

An inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor is a per­son or enti­ty con­tract­ed to per­form work for anoth­er enti­ty, but who is not an employ­ee of that enti­ty and is not sub­ject to the con­trol or direc­tion of the hir­er. They usu­al­ly work on a project basis and are usu­al­ly paid on a per-project basis. 

A sub­con­trac­tor is a per­son or enti­ty con­tract­ed to per­form work for anoth­er enti­ty (the “prime con­trac­tor”). A sub­con­trac­tor is sub­ject to the con­trol and direc­tion of the prime con­trac­tor, which is the enti­ty respon­si­ble for the over­all per­for­mance of the project. The prime con­trac­tor typ­i­cal­ly con­tracts with the sub­con­trac­tor to per­form spe­cif­ic tasks relat­ed to the over­all project. The sub­con­trac­tor is usu­al­ly paid on an hourly basis.

What States and Which Statutes protects an uninsured sub-contractor for work related injury? 

  1. Cal­i­for­nia: Labor Code §3706
  2. Col­orado: Col­orado Revised Statutes §8–41-401
  3. Con­necti­cut: Con­necti­cut Gen­er­al Statutes §31–290
  4. Delaware: Delaware Code Title 19 §2314
  5. Flori­da: Flori­da Statutes §440.10
  6. Geor­gia: Offi­cial Code of Geor­gia Anno­tat­ed §34–9‑8
  7. Hawaii: Hawaii Revised Statutes §386–87
  8. Ida­ho: Ida­ho Code §72–1501
  9. Illi­nois: Illi­nois Com­piled Statutes 820 ILCS 305/2
  10. Indi­ana: Indi­ana Code §22–3‑2–2 Iowa: Iowa Code §85.20
  11. Kansas: Kansas Statutes Anno­tat­ed §44–501
  12. Maine: Maine Revised Statutes Title 39‑A §105
  13. Mary­land: Labor and Employ­ment Arti­cle §9–622
  14. Mass­a­chu­setts: Mass­a­chu­setts Gen­er­al Laws Chap­ter 152 §25A
  15. Michi­gan: Michi­gan Com­piled Laws §418.131
  16. Min­neso­ta: Min­neso­ta Statutes §176.181
  17. Mis­sis­sip­pi: Mis­sis­sip­pi Code §71–3‑37
  18. Mis­souri: Mis­souri Revised Statutes 287.065
  19. Mon­tana: Mon­tana Code Anno­tat­ed §39–71-411
  20. Nebras­ka: Revised Statutes of Nebras­ka §48–1,143
  21. Neva­da: Neva­da Revised Statutes 616A.540
  22. New Jer­sey: New Jer­sey Statutes Anno­tat­ed §34:15–79
  23. New York: New York Labor Law §25‑a
  24. North Car­oli­na: North Car­oli­na Gen­er­al Statutes §97–1
  25. North Dako­ta: North Dako­ta Cen­tu­ry Code §65–05-30
  26. Ore­gon: Ore­gon Revised Statutes §659A.820
  27. Penn­syl­va­nia: Penn­syl­va­nia Con­sol­i­dat­ed Statutes §440.11
  28. Rhode Island: Rhode Island Gen­er­al Laws §28–33‑2
  29. South Car­oli­na: South Car­oli­na Code of Laws §42–15-40
  30. Ten­nessee: Ten­nessee Code Anno­tat­ed §50–6‑116
  31. Texas: Texas Labor Code §406.092 Utah: Utah Code Anno­tat­ed §34A‑2–205
  32. Ver­mont: Ver­mont Statutes Anno­tat­ed Title 21 §614
  33. Vir­ginia: Code of Vir­ginia §65.2–308 Wash­ing­ton: Revised Code of Wash­ing­ton §51.12.065
  34. West Vir­ginia: West Vir­ginia Code §23–5A‑1
  35. Wis­con­sin: Wis­con­sin Statutes §102.29
  36. Wyoming: Wyoming Statutes §27–14-602

What States Hold Independent Contractor Liable for Injury at Workplace?

  1. Alaba­ma: Alaba­ma Code § 25–5‑11: “In any action brought against a gen­er­al con­trac­tor to recov­er dam­ages for per­son­al injury or death result­ing from any work done or ser­vices per­formed in con­nec­tion with the con­struc­tion, alter­ation, repair, or main­te­nance of any build­ing, struc­ture, or oth­er improve­ment to real prop­er­ty, the gen­er­al con­trac­tor shall not be liable for the dam­ages unless it is affir­ma­tive­ly shown that the neg­li­gence of the gen­er­al con­trac­tor was the direct and prox­i­mate cause of the injury or death sustained.”
  2. Cal­i­for­nia: Cal­i­for­nia Labor Code § 2750.5: “No per­son or enti­ty shall be liable for dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  3. Con­necti­cut: Con­necti­cut Gen­er­al Statutes § 31–288: “No per­son engaged in any work of improve­ment of any real prop­er­ty shall be liable for dam­ages on account of any injury to or death of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any employ­ee of such inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor, unless such injury or death is the result of the neg­li­gence of such per­son engaged in any work of improve­ment of such real property.”
  4. Flori­da: Flori­da Statutes § 768.095: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for any dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  5. Illi­nois: Illi­nois Com­piled Statutes § 745 ILCS 10/1: “No per­son or enti­ty employ­ing or con­tract­ing with an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor shall be liable for any dam­ages on account of injury to or death of any employ­ee of such inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor, or any oth­er per­son, result­ing from the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  6. Iowa: Iowa Code § 673.4: “No per­son employ­ing or con­tract­ing with an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor shall be liable for dam­ages on account of any injury to or death of any employ­ee of such inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor, or any oth­er per­son, result­ing from the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  7. Louisiana: Louisiana Civ­il Code Arti­cle 2317: “No con­trac­tor or sub­con­trac­tor shall be liable for dam­ages on account of any injury to or death of any employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any oth­er per­son, result­ing from the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  8. Mary­land: Mary­land Code Ann., Courts and Judi­cial Pro­ceed­ings § 5–309: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for any dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  9. Mis­sis­sip­pi: Mis­sis­sip­pi Code Anno­tat­ed § 11–1‑63: “No per­son engaged in any work of improve­ment of any real prop­er­ty shall be liable or respon­si­ble for dam­ages on account of any injury to or death of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any employ­ee of such inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor, unless such injury or death is the result of the neg­li­gence of such per­son engaged in any work of improve­ment of such real property.”
  10. Mis­souri: Mis­souri Revised Statutes § 537.672: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  11. Neva­da: Neva­da Revised Statutes § 41.135: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for any dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  12. New Jer­sey: New Jer­sey Statutes § 2A:37–4: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for any dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  13. New York: New York Labor Law § 240: “No con­trac­tor or own­er of real prop­er­ty shall be liable for dam­ages on account of any injury to or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any oth­er per­son, result­ing from the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  14. North Car­oli­na: North Car­oli­na Gen­er­al Statutes § 68–136: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for any dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  15. Okla­homa: Okla­homa Statutes Title 85A, § 1–102: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for any dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  16. Ore­gon: Ore. Rev. Stat. § 30.905: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for any dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  17. Penn­syl­va­nia: Penn­syl­va­nia Statutes § 8542: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for any dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  18. Texas: Texas Civ­il Prac­tice and Reme­dies Code § 82.006: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for any dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”
  19. Vir­ginia: Vir­ginia Code § 8.01–45.1: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for any dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.” 
  20. Wash­ing­ton: Wash­ing­ton Revised Code § 4.24.250: “No per­son or enti­ty, includ­ing a gen­er­al con­trac­tor, shall be liable for any dam­ages for injury or death of an employ­ee of an inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor caused by the neg­li­gence of the inde­pen­dent con­trac­tor or any of its employees.”

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