Vocations · Professional Development

Contractor or employee?
The facts decide, not the label.

Calling someone a contractor does not make them one. What counts is how the work actually happens: who decides how it is done, who pays for the tools, whether there is a real chance of profit or loss, and whether the work is ongoing and central to the business. Answer twelve questions in the IRS’s three groups of evidence and see which way the relationship leans.

Check a roleWhat you get

Roles to sort out

The worked example is made up: a weekend tutor called a contractor who works like an employee, a freelance web designer who is clearly a contractor and a part-time bookkeeper with answers both ways. Saved on this device only.

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What you get

Vocations · Professional DevelopmentFree

What you finish with
A record per working relationship: role, who is answering, hours a week, months, and twelve questions in three groups answered toward employee, toward contractor or unclear. Works out counts per group and an overall lean; lists roles by lean; flags mixed answers (with IRS Form SS-8), core work that stricter state tests weigh heavily and contract labels that disagree with the facts.
Who it is for
Workers deciding whether a job offer or gig is employment, and small business owners, schools and nonprofits deciding how to hire.
Format
Browser guide with a saved record per role. Prints one role, every role in a table or a blank question sheet; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); exports and imports a file.
Access
Free. No account, no sign-in and nothing to install. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Professional Development space in Caveat Vocations.
Support
Questions about access, an order or a correction: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. Describe the work as it really happens.
  2. Answer each question from the facts.
  3. Mark unclear when it truly is.
  4. Read the lean, not one answer.
  5. For mixed results, get advice or file Form SS-8.

Check a role

Three kinds of evidence

The three kinds of evidence the IRS looks atBehavioral controlWho decides how, whenand where the work isdone.Training in thebusiness’s own methods.Financial controlWho pays for tools andexpenses.Chance of profit orloss.Hourly pay or paid bythe job.The relationshipBenefits, permanence andhow central the work is.What the contract says,which is not decisive.Three kinds of evidenceBehavioral controlWho decides how, when and where the work isdone.Training in the business’s own methods.Financial controlWho pays for tools and expenses.Chance of profit or loss.Hourly pay or paid by the job.The relationshipBenefits, permanence and how central thework is.What the contract says, which is notdecisive.
No single answer decides it; the IRS looks at the whole relationship. The Department of Labor and many states apply their own tests for wage and unemployment law, some of them stricter.

How the lean works

The guide counts answers that point each way. When one side has at least twice as many as the other, it leans that way; otherwise it is mixed. This is a way to organize the facts, not a legal test, and one strong fact can outweigh several weak ones.

Why it matters

Employees are covered by minimum wage, overtime, unemployment insurance and workers’ compensation, and employers withhold and pay employment taxes. Misclassification can mean back taxes and penalties for a business, and lost protections for a worker.

Sources

  1. Internal Revenue Service. Independent contractor (self-employed) or employee? and Publication 15-A, Employer’s Supplemental Tax Guide (irs.gov).
  2. Internal Revenue Service. Form SS-8, Determination of Worker Status for Purposes of Federal Employment Taxes and Income Tax Withholding.
  3. U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division. Employee or independent contractor classification under the Fair Labor Standards Act (dol.gov).
  4. U.S. Small Business Administration. Hire your first employee: understand worker classification (sba.gov).

The worked example is made up. This is general federal information, not legal or tax advice; state rules differ. Nothing you type is sent to Caveat. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.