Co. states Independent contractors are to self provide own ppe is this against Osha reg's?

[gallbladder]

Two questions

1. Is it illegal for a company to tell a w-9 independent contractor they are responsible to provide on gloves for home health care?

2. Am I really an independent contractor.

Here it goes;

In the past:

over the last ten years, I have been a home health nurse doing private duty; w-2 employee based home health through a regional company with multiple satellite offices, and another singular local business with one location as a w-2 employee.

All of the above have provided me with ppe (gloves) without any issue, whatsoever. One company where I was w-2, handed me multiple new boxes at a time and always reminded me to take more.

Currently:

(question 1)

The company I work for as a w-9 independent contractor, no taxes are taken from my checks, upon hire stated to me I would get one box of gloves a month. In a nurses meeting the closet with gloves was shown to us and we were told verbally that each nurse working in the home would receive one box a month and after that we are on our own. I brought up at this time that my size was one size larger than what they stocked. The supervisor stated they would order me a size that fit me. Fast forward a year later, Im still with the same company and I have never received a box that fits me. During my tenure here it has been like pulling teeth to get my supervisor to bring any gloves to the home. When I go to get my paychecks- there are never any gloves offered to me. There have been months when the supervisor would bring a box of gloves, however, a size that is one size too small for me for me to use. I bring this to their attention they tell me "your Independant you supply your own."

Recently on July 7th I contacted my supervisor and informed them we had no gloves at the home. They stated they brought some over for the month already. That is a lie. There is no way possible as the primary worker in the home, while supplementimg with my own gloves that we would run out of gloves, in 7 days. Impossible. I am very frustrated over their negligence.

(question 2)

I am given a schedule monthly printed by my supervisor. I select my own hours, with a single patient they assigned me. I am fully responsible for the shifts i select. I am under no obligation to take a pre determined schedule. Again I select my own hours, and the supervisor types it up and hands it to me. Am. I really an independent contractor?

I've been an independent contractor for another company, doing wellness clinics and they shipped me boxes upon boxes of gloves. No issue whatsoever. I didn't have taxes taken out with this Company either.

What are your opinion(s)

[JustBeachyNurse, LPN]

IRS has specific requirements of what a 1099/independent contractor vs employee status.

As far as gloves it sounds like their argument will be that they provided gloves but not your size. Check with OSHA as to the obligation to provide gloves if a private duty/extended care case then the DME supplier may provide the gloves instead of the agency

[JustBeachyNurse, LPN]

The IRS guidelines for independent contractor vs employee:

https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/independent-contractor-self-employed-or-employee

[JustBeachyNurse, LPN]

In Maryland you likely are not a 1099/independent contractor:

http://www.publicjustice.org/uploads/file/pdf/Maryland%20Misclassification%20Fact%20Sheet%20-%20FINAL.pdf

The OSHA guidelines state employers must supply PPE so if you are self employed you provide PPE, if the patient is considered your employer then the patient provides PPE.

If you don't create your own care plan you are likely not a 1099/IC but an employee. Just making your own schedule doesn't make you an IC. The fact that there is supervision and a care plan in place may in fact mean you are misclassified

[brillohead, ADN, RN]

In my pre-nursing life, I worked for a commercial general contracting company. Virtually *everyone* on the jobsite was working for or as a contractor rather than an employee of my company.

Carpenters had to bring their own hammers.

Painters had to bring their own paintbrushes and buckets.

Welders had to bring their own helmets and gloves.

Everyone had to bring their own hardhat to the jobsite.

[homecaresurvivor]

I'm not so familiar with how OSHA requirements impact work done as an independent contractor. My only experience with that is as a freelance writer, and not much PPE is required while sitting at my laptop at home! However, whether or not the company is required to do so, I am surprised they wouldn't want to provide you with something as basic as gloves. Gloves are a pretty cheap item, especially when purchased in bulk supply as I'm sure they do. PPE of course protects us, but it protects the patient as well. Does that not concern them? I just find this to be a really crummy way for a company to try to save some $$. If they insist that you must purchase your own gloves, the least they can do is offer to sell you a box at the price they pay, which I'm sure is less than what you as an individual would encounter.