108.221 Misclassification; administrative assessments.

(1)

(a) Any employer described in s. 108.18 (2) (c) or engaged in the painting or drywall finishing of buildings or other structures who knowingly and intentionally provides false information to the department for the purpose of misclassifying or attempting to misclassify an individual who is an employee of the employer as a nonemployee shall, for each incident, be assessed a penalty by the department in the amount of $500 for each employee who is misclassified, but not to exceed $7,500 per incident.

(b) The department shall consider the following nonexclusive factors in determining whether an employer described under par. (a) knowingly and intentionally provided false information to the department for the purpose of misclassifying or attempting to misclassify an individual who is an employee of the employer as a nonemployee:

1. Whether the employer was previously found to have misclassified an employee in the same or a substantially similar position.

2. Whether the employer was the subject of litigation or a governmental investigation relating to worker misclassification and the employer, as a result of that litigation or investigation, received an opinion or decision from a federal or state court or agency that the subject position or a substantially similar position should be classified as an employee.

(2) Any employer described in s. 108.18 (2) (c) or engaged in the painting or drywall finishing of buildings or other structures who, through coercion, requires an individual to adopt the status of a nonemployee shall be assessed a penalty by the department in the amount of $1,000 for each individual so coerced, but not to exceed $10,000 per calendar year.

(3) Assessments under subs. (1) and (2) shall be deposited in the unemployment program integrity fund.

History: 2015 a. 334.