Contractor or employee – the debate continues on a much larger scale

Almost 17 years after the High Court handed down its seminal judgment in Hollis v Vabu[1], the debate regarding the distinction between contractor and employee continues. This time, however, the debate has taken the form of a Federal Court of Australia class action in Bywater v Appco Group Pty Ltd [2018] FCA 707. In discussing Bywater, this article looks at class actions as a mechanism for workers to collectively pursue employers for underpayment, sham contracting and other breaches of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) and the effect such a phenomenon may have if it takes off. Background For a period of about two years, Jacob Bywater engaged in marketing and selling merchandise to the public on behalf of various charities and organisations. Mr Bywater provided these services pursuant to an agreement he entered with Onshore Sports Group Pty Limited and, later, Bay Marketing Group Pty Limited. Both agreements provided…