Legislators who've only worked in gov't & never in the private sector, this is for you. The whole #PROAct #ABCTest debate might be confusing if your worldview assumes that every boss is a greedy slave-driver and every employee is an exploited, voiceless victim. #NoPROAct

If I thought that, and I wanted to help exploited, voiceless victims, I might think that making it easier for employees to unionize would be a great thing. I get it. Your heart's in the right place. #NoProAct

Except this is 2021, & the explosion in self-employment, freelancing & the app-assisted gig economy have made it incredibly simple for any employee to tell any cruel, tyrannical boss to shove it, and go work for themselves. #NoPROAct

And thank God for that, what with gov't lockdowns shuttering so many businesses & schools, & keeping so many of us at home. Freelancing & gig work has been the literal difference between destitution & survival for millions of us, not the paltry stimulus payments. #NoPROAct

Some of you might think the #PROAct & #ABCTest only affect freelance writers because they've been particularly vocal. You may not even understand what an independent contractor is. I'll try to simplify this as much as possible... #NoPROAct

Let's say your teen has time on their hands & a lawnmower. Your neighbor has a lawn, but more money than time. The two of them chat & agree on a price, and the teen cuts the grass. Your teen is happy: they've converted time & a skill into money. #NoPROAct

They neighbor values her time more than the money she paid for the service, so she's happy. And the other neighbors are happy because their property values are maintained. Everybody wins. There's no exploitation cuz the neighborhood is full of lawns that need cutting, #NoPROAct

so if the 1st neighbor didn't offer enough $ or was just a jerk, your teen could simply move on to the next neighbor. If your teen wanted too much $, the neighbor could decide that she didn't value her time as much as she thought, & cut the grass herself. #NoPROAct

Or the neighbor could hire the kid across the street to cut her grass instead of your kid. No one is forced to do anything they don't want to do. Everyone has options. #NoPROAct

In this scenario, there is no boss. Your teen's an independent contractor who can set their own hours & working conditions. They can charge whatever the market will bear & work whenever the sun shines. In this scenario, everyone stays happy, either by working together or not.

Transactions like this have occurred for as long as there have been human brains that could perceive "value." Besides sex, this kind of value-for-value exchange is probably the oldest human activity. (And combining the two created the world's oldest IC profession.) #NoPROAct

These voluntary exchanges of value happen in every industry, in every profession, in a free market where individuals have control over their labor & there is a demand for the service they offer. And the list of services offered by ICs is enormous, far beyond freelance writing.

In my industry, marketing, there are freelance #copywriters, #PR #consultants, #marketing #strategists, graphic #designers, #jingle writers, market researchers, product demonstrators, #SEO contractors, #voiceover artists, #website developers, #app coders... #NoPROAct

#mediabuyers, #telemarketers, #socialmediamanagers, #contentmarketers...there are literally dozens of professional services offered by #freelancers in just the #marketing & #PR worlds. Why? Because biz conditions change & sometimes you need to ramp up or ramp down... #NoPROAct

or sometimes you need skilled experts for a one-off project or something that only comes around once a year like a huge #tradeshow, or a new #product launch or ad #campaign , so it doesn't make sense to keep an employee on staff who only works 1 week out of 52. #NoPROAct

Let's say you need a commercial for your next campaign. Just 1 may include freelance #scriptwriters, #producer, a location scout, a #director, #videographer, #production assistants, #hair & #makeup artists, a #productiondesigner, set dresser, #wardrobe, #catering, #sound

... #transportation managers, drivers & more...in post-production, a #videoeditor, #SFX, #music & sound design, a closed captioner etc. I hope you're getting the . Any time there's a short-term or part-time or 1-off need for a professional service, you'll find freelancers.

The vast majority of #freelancers are happy with this way of working. We fit work in around our schedules, taking care of our kids & parents, our volunteering, educating our kids @ home during pandemics, etc. Disabled or chronically ill people can work when they feel up to it.

As an independent biz owner, I negotiate my contracts, decide which projects to take on or reject, & which clients to work with (ensuring I'll never again be subject to sexual harassment, ageism, sexism or racism). I decide when, how & where I will work (lockdowns excepted)

I'm a #freelance #speaker, #trainer & #consultant. I'm not exploited. I don't need or want collective bargaining: it feels too much like those group projects in school where the smart, ambitious kid earned the A and the slackers rode her coattails.

#Freelancers, independent contractors & #gig workers add $1.2 TRILLION to the US economy * we're 36% of the workforce. Over 80% of us are happy as freelancers & can't or won't take a 9-5 job for any money. We're not misclassified or exploited. We're small biz owners. #NoProAct

Not sure how many of your constituents could be put out of business by the #ABCTest in the #Infrastructure bill? Ask the #IRS how many 1099s are issued to freelancers in your state. That's how many constituents of all parties you will energize to vote against you. #NoPROAct