ABC+ Update, May 26
US Senate, Julie Su, and USDOL nomination holdup; Pennsylvania passes freelancer protection but only for construction industry
ABC+ Update, May 19
USDOL and Julie Su nomination; Pennsylvania bill that would misclassify freelancers
ABC+ Update, May 12
USDOL and Julie Su nomination and Sen. Krysten Sinema; Rep. Kevin Kiley defending freelancers; California and AARP; Illinois
ABC+ Update, May 5
Rhode Island pushing for the ABC Test; California unions try to overturn Prop 22; USDOL and Julie Su nomination; podcast with economist explaining the business hazards of the ABC Test.
ABC+ Update, April 21
Senate HELP Committee and Julie Su; US House of Representatives Hearing on Freelancing; Kevin Kiley and interview with two freelancers; union PAC money
ABC+ Update, April 14
Senate Hearing and Julie Su nomination for USDOL; House of Representatives and hearing on freelancers; Michigan tries to hinder freelancers in 16 different bills; Pennsylvania and New Jersey plan a partnership on “misclassification.”
ABC+ Update, April 7
HELP Committee and Julie Su nomination for USDOL; New York and Senator Kristen Gillibrand
ABC+ Update, March 31
USDOL, Julie Su nomination, HELP Committee; state laws possibly running into pending USDOL regulation against freelancers; Illinois passes Rep. Will Guzzardi’s bill that purports to protect freelancers; National Association of Manufacturers and nearly 100 other orgs oppose reintroduction of the PRO Act; everything you could want to know the battle freelancers have faced in a YouTube video that’s a little over 8 minutes
ABC+ Update, March 17
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand votes against freelancers, including her New York constituents; Times-Union newspaper op-ed on freelancers and Unemployment; ABC Test in both New York State senate and assembly bills; California courts and ongoing cases involving AB5; the PRO Act renamed after union leader, now the Richard L. Trumka PRO Act
ABC+ Update, March 10
US House of Representatives, H. Res 72 in support of freelancers, and Rep. Grace Meng’s lack of contact with a constituent; US Senate and nomination of Julie Su for USDOL; seniors who freelance and lack of support by AARP; pending 184-page regulation at USDOL that would end freelancing by defining who is a freelancer and high 5-digit fines to our clients for getting it “wrong”
ABC+ Update, March 3
Senate HELP Committee reintroduces the freelance-busing PRO Act, renaming it after Richard Trumka, deceased head of the AFL-CIO; Julie Su nominated to replace Marty Walsh as secretary of the USDOL; Su pushed for AB5 (ABC Test) in California; Rep. Kevin Kiley gives US House of Representative floor speech opposing Su nomination; National Federation of Independent Businesses opposes PRO Act reintroduction; Freelancers Union, Authors Guild, and National Writers flip-flop on protecting its members
ABC+ Update, Feb. 24
Sen. Andrew Gournades (D-NY) reintroduces unnecessary Freelance Isn’t Free bill right after NY Gov. Hochul vetoes it; reporting actual misclassification to USDOL and IRS; Marty Walsh steps down as secretary of USDOL; Julie Su is expected to be nominated to replace Walsh; Flexjobs report about freelancing; podcast explaining harms of AB5 (California)/ABC Test (rest of America and federal government).
ABC+ Update, Feb. 17
Sen. Robert Jackson (D-NY) sponsors NY Senate bill S2052 with the freelance-busting ABC Test, talk with his office goes poorly; Nevada safe from ABC Test, for now; US Senate HELP Committee holds hearing about reintroducing the PRO Act; US House of Representatives puts forth HR 72, to recognize importance of freelancers to the US economy
ABC+ Update, Feb. 10
Zoom meeting planned with office of Sen. Robert Jackson (D-NY), sponsor of freelance-busting ABC Test in New York State bill S2052; Washington State seems safe from ABC Test, for now; Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) brings Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, head of the California Labor Federation and mastermind of AB5 in California, to hear State of the Union
ABC+ Update, Feb. 3
Sens. Robert Jackson, Rachel May, Jabari Brisport, and Brad Hoylman-Sigal sponsor New York Senate bill S2052, which is the freelance-busting ABC Test; Illinois makes moves to introduce the ABC Test there; Pennsylvania plans to crack down on “misclassification” of freelancers; kitchen and bath designers oppose the pending USDOL regulation; lawyer explains possible ramifications for freelancers and our clients caused by pending USDOL regulation; Sen. Bernie Sanders to reintroduce the PRO Act; Marty Walsh to step down as secretary of the USDOL and Su to be nominated as replacement
ABC+ Update, Jan. 27
Sens. Jackson, May, Brisport, Hoylman-Sigal re-introduce the freelance-busting ABC Test in NY State bill S2052; Kansas introduces Strengthening Independent Contractor Rights, an anti-ABC Test to protect freelancers