Remember the case of the Franchisee's which all the headlines seems to really focus on. In this case the employees have virtually no contact with the corporate office.
And then that seems completely different, because then how many of those things I listed above (working conditions, work facility, hours, etc.) is corporate actually responsible for? Not very many, right?
So when you work for a temp agency, the agency cuts your paycheck, provides benefits, files your tax forms, and pays your workers comp premiums. Meanwhile, the employer provides the work facility, controls the work environment, sets the hours, and manages your day to day work. Is that a correct assessment of most temp arrangements?
Yes.
In the mortgage bubble heyday I worked through a temp agency for a mortgage company. My job was employment verification. You know the people who made the news a few years ago , who signed off that someone made what they said they did, so that was good enough to bundle with other x-grade loans and sell them off? Yeah, I don't remember actually signing anything, I think I was the step below that. I had about ten minutes of training. Anything that seemed fishy I was supposed to pass on the a manager who would then come up with a reason why it was okay and then sign off on it. Everyone other than managers were temps. Some of my coworkers had been there for years. None of us really knew what we were doing and had to take the managers' explanations as true to do our jobs.
I think the key points addressed by others above are:
1) who has financial control? 2) who has behavioral control?
If you have one or both, it stands to reason you are a joint employer, from the logic of the NLRB.
Now, think about hospitals - many hospitals outsource the cafeteria, housekeeping, and other services to companies like Aramark, Sodexo, etc.. Sodexo has a training program for food & nutrition/cafeteria workers, etc. It isn't the hospital's core business and it is a high turnover industry so it isn't in the hospital's interest to worry about maintaining the training competence of the management team running the show. So the hospital may outsource all or some of its operations. Some hospitals only contract out the management portion. So the hospital retains the bulk of the employee risk in this situation. If those workers unionized, does it mean Sodexo, as contracted management, have to show up to the table for negotiations?
What about companies like GE to which many hospitals outsource biomedical engineering maintenance. If there is a management contract will GE be at the table if those employees unionize?
Many of the considerations default to who writes the checks vs. who controls the work. We usually think of the employer as writing the check as the agency. But in healthcare, particularly in the Texas Med Center, it is often the outsourcing of the behavior control to those most competent to manage that line of business and retention of the financial control for a more total-employee population feel.
This NLRB decision will create an incredible increase in bureaucracy all the way around, which will drive up costs and therefore suppress wages. It's not employee friendly at all.
So when you work for a temp agency, the agency cuts your paycheck, provides benefits, files your tax forms, and pays your workers comp premiums. Meanwhile, the employer provides the work facility, controls the work environment, sets the hours, and manages your day to day work. Is that a correct assessment of most temp arrangements?
I have only worked for one but my paycheck was cut by the company and they also set my schedule etc. I had to report my hours to the temp agency so he could bill the company. I ended up getting hired and the only real change was that the clock started ticking for my benefits.