Compliance Update

Earlier this year, the Maryland Northern Virginia Floor Covering Association was successful in its efforts to amend the Workplace Fraud Act of 2009.  We were satisfied that we had developed a clear path to compliance for our members.  We anticipated that as a result of the amendments to the law and the understanding that we developed with the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, they would cease their aggressive and inappropriate efforts to reclassify workers who were legitimate independent contractors and would allow us to continue doing business as we have for many years.

Unfortunately, DLLR has made it quite clear that they have no intention of backing down. In November, they enacted regulations requiring all contractors and subcontractors to submit certified payroll reports electronically.  As of November 26, 2012, they will no longer accept certified payroll reports submitted on Form WH-347 and they have clearly stated that they will impose late filing penalties on anyone who continues to submit payroll reports on paper.  In addition, they recently posted a video, produced by the United Brotherhood of Carpenters, entitled:  “1099 Worker Misclassification: It’s Time to Play by the Rules” on DLLR’s Worker Classification Protection Unit’s webpage.  This video directly addresses the use of independent contractors in the construction industry and makes it clear what the Carpenter’s union and DLLR think about companies that don’t treat their subcontractors as employees:

if you are unable to view the video using the above link, you can try this link to the video on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yVF89KSufY&feature=player_embeddedAs soon as we discovered this offensive and inappropriate video on DLLR’s website, we contacted Bruce Bereano, lobbyist for the Association, as well as Ellen Valentino of the NFIB, and two of our staunchest supporters in the legislature, Senator Allan Kittleman and Delegate Kelly Schulz.  They immediately contacted DLLR regarding the video.  By the end of the day, we heard that DLLR was going to take the video down and by 9:00am on December 14, 2012, less than 24 hours after our initial contact with the lobbyists and legislators, DLLR had removed the offensive video from its website.

We are sharing this with you, to let you know that although we had some success earlier this year and we have won several small battles, the war is still on!  The Association is determined to continue fighting these battles on behalf of all our members.  But in order to do that, we need your support!  The legal expenses that the Association incurs are significant.  While you were quite generous earlier this year when we asked for your financial support, our legal fund is nearly depleted.  The 2013 legislative session begins on January 9, 2013.  If we are going to continue fighting these battles on behalf of all our members, we need your continuous support.  Please consider making a financial contribution to the Association’s Legal Fund today!

Please forward this to fellow dealers who may not be members of MDNVAFCA.  This affects everyone who does business in Maryland and is an ever growing problem around the nation.  If you are not a member of MDNVAFCA, please contact Michelle Goshorn at mdnvafa@msn.com or 1-877-896-3605.  With a strong active membership, we can continue to fight for you!