Travel agencies, tour operators and agents in California are being called upon to contact their legislators to show support for a bill classifying independent agents as independent contractors instead of employees.The California Coalition of Travel Organizations (CCTO) has sent out templates that can be customized and sent to legislators in California in hopes of making changes to the ruling in the case of Dynamex Operations West Inc. v. Superior Court of Los Angeles County.MORE Travel Agent The case made it more difficult to classify a worker as an independent contractor, which raised issues for travel agents, who under the law must now perform work outside of their company’s usual course of business.Assembly Bill 5 was introduced in late 2018 and exempts certain professions from the independent contractor regulations. The CCTO has been fighting for the amendment, as the group believes independent agents under the state's Seller of Travel Law are independent contractors.The CCTO is calling on agencies, tour operators and independent contractor on the west coast to contact their legislators to help the cause. The organization’s full template letter for independent agents is below:I am contacting you as your constituent who is a small business independent travel agent.I urge you to take action to ensure that legislation addressing the Dynamex decision clearly states that independent agents under the state’s Seller of Travel Law are independent contractors.Since the inception of the California Seller of Travel Law 25 years ago, this state consumer protection law has acknowledged independent agents like me - who are primarily women and are all small business owners - as an integral part of the travel industry.I have the freedom to set my own hours and schedules, set my own rates, select the customers with whom I will work and market my own brand.Few, if any, of these important factors would be available to me if I were to be forced into an unwanted employee relationship. I want to preserve my freedom to operate as an independent agent, and I need your help. Thank you. Let's block ads! (Why?)