Is Mr. Al Gore an Employee or Independent Contractor? Let's Discuss His Case

Determining Employment Status: Employee or Independent Contractor?

Mr. Al Gore is a driver for a company. The company assists Mr. Al Gore financially to buy a truck, and Mr. Al Gore has to paint the truck with the company colors. Additionally, Mr. Al Gore has to wear the company's uniform and be on call on weekdays. He gets paid based on a mileage rate for the deliveries he completes. The question arises: Is Mr. Al Gore an employee or an independent contractor?

As per your above-described problem, Mr. Al Gore seems to be more of an Independent Contractor since he is being paid on a mileage basis. If the company wanted him to be an employee, then the company would have given him a monthly salary rather than a mileage basis. The reason why I support him as an Independent Contractor is that the company is asking him to buy the asset (truck) and is asking him to work for them. Therefore, if anything happens to the truck, it would not be a company problem since it is Mr. Al Gore's property. We can also see that the company assists financially but is paying on a mileage basis, so it means it's a form of loan help, according to me. This is what I feel in the above case study.

Regards,
YDM