When he goes to the capital in Springfield to testify before the House, Gallagher is in his element. "That's the only satisfaction I've gotten out of this whole thing -- the education in the legislative process."
Weirdly, he doesn't sound disillusioned. But his state-level campaign may prove a hard lesson. In Illinois all interested parties must sign off on a bill before it goes to a vote. The IDES has signed off on Bill 179, and so has the industry. The holdouts? The unions. "It boils down to a negotiated settlement," Jeorg says. "No one knows what it will take to get labor to settle."
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Gallagher sees the wall up ahead. He thinks he can pursue the appeals process for another five months before the money runs out. If his bill doesn't pass by then, he'll have to decide whether to reclassify. "It would come down to, Do I cut off my nose to spite my face? My partner and I, we both have families, and a lot of other families depend on Quicksilver. If it came down to closing the business on principle or paying, converting, and trying to survive, I'd probably have to . . . I'd just have to wait and see what happens. As the standard-bearer for this legislative battle, I wouldn't want to let anyone down." But later he admits, "If it means retaining the company, there's no contest. Which upsets me, because I believe they're independents."
But beliefs don't keep bread on the table. In fact, Gallagher has planned for reclassification. He and others figure that as more companies are forced to reclassify workers, the industry will consolidate. Only big companies that can spread out personnel overhead will survive. Gallagher wants to make Quicksilver too big to swallow, and with that in mind he recently acquired another courier for $10,000. That's money he won't spend on his crusade, so it appears he's made his decision. If he can grow to $5 million within a few years, he figures, he'll be safe.
Can Quicksilver make money with employees? Other courier companies do, like Arrow Messenger Service, which is owned by Phyllis Apelbaum, president of the Messenger Service Association of Illinois. In the 20 years since its founding, Arrow has grown steadily to revenues of more than $6 million. Yet its 200 drivers and bikers are all employees, with paid holidays and vacations, benefits, and Christmas bonuses. Apelbaum withholds taxes, FICA, the whole deal. "I believe that, in my company, the couriers are employees," says Apelbaum. "Direction and control are important to me. It's part of the service to the customer." Also, when she started Arrow it was more common to use employees.
Apelbaum's customers pay for her principles; Arrow charges 25% more than the regional average. "Have we lost business because of it? Absolutely. Would I have it any other way? No sir." Her customers pay more, she says, because, like her, "they don't expect couriers to work below a living wage."
Those principles also make it harder for Apelbaum to recruit couriers. "Some think if you're withholding taxes, you're taking their money. If they go to work for a contractor company, their checks will be bigger. Our personnel people tell them up front that we use employees. Sixty percent leave right then." The ones that stay, she says, stay longer than contractors would, even though Apelbaum makes demands of them that she could never make of contractors. Arrow's drivers can't drop out for a week to follow the Grateful Dead. And they wear uniforms.
Lisa Vilchis would have no part of that. She's been working as a Quicksilver bike courier on and off for about two years. Bored with her part-time job in a mortgage-lending bank, Vilchis got three tattoos and a courier job. She's 28 and looks like Jodie Foster. She's biked for three services but has stayed with Quicksilver the longest. "I won't work for some services. Arrow makes you wear a bow tie. I'm not going to wear a yellow shirt and a black bow tie."
Lisa says she keeps good records and pays her taxes. That's unusually conscientious. Many bikers laugh at their colleagues who pay. Vilchis does without health insurance for now -- a situation that displeases her mother. "She tells me I'll wind up in Cook County Hospital."
Vilchis says she lives for the moment; Bill Clinton frets about her future. What will she retire on? How will she pay if she does wind up in Cook County Hospital? And does she pay her taxes regularly? You can't blame the government for worrying -- that's part of its job. It would be so much simpler if Lisa Vilchis were an employee.
HERE'S HOW THE IRS TELLS AN EMPLOYEE FROM AN INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR:
Workers are generally considered employees if they --
1. Must comply with the employer's instructions about the work
2. Receive training from or at the direction of the employer
3. Provide services that are integrated into the business
4. Provide services that must be rendered personally
5. Are aided by assistants who are hired, supervised, and paid by the employer
6. Have a continuing working relationship with the employer
7. Must follow set hours of work
8. Work full-time for an employer
9. Do their work on the employer's premises
10. Must do their work in a sequence set by the employer
11. Must submit regular reports to the employer
12. Receive payments of regular amounts at set intervals
13. Receive payments for business or traveling expenses
14. Rely on the employer to furnish tools and materials
15. Lack a major investment in the facilities or equipment used to perform the services
16. Cannot make a profit or suffer a loss from their services
17. Work for one employer at a time
18. Do not offer their services to the general public
19. Can be fired by the employer
20. May quit work at any time without incurring liability
Source: The IRS. n
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