This conversation came up when I spoke with a friend about opening a salon. She works as a hairstylist at a salon where she works on straight commission on everything she sells (haircuts, hair coloring, products she sells, etc.) plus tips. She doesn't get any benefits but the salon pays for all of her supplies/equipment. She said most hairstylists don't prefer to work on commission or hourly wages; they want to work as independent contractors where they "rent the chair" from the salon owner and keep 100% of what they sell, set their own prices, work their own schedules, etc. She also said the salon owners really don't make much money from independent contractors.
So, the point of this thread: with all of the commotion being made by former dancers suing their former employers (strip clubs) for back wages, benefits, hourly wages, etc. - how many of y'all would actually prefer employee status over being an independent contractor? Would you forgo making your own schedule and keeping all of your earnings (minus house fees and tip outs) for employee benefits and a base salary? I understand there is a risk/reward factor for independent contractors ($1000+ nights vs. nights where you owe the club money), which I'm guessing is the biggest issue for those who want to be employees. For those who choose employee, would you worry about losing the option to choose which customers you dance for (clubs could mandate that 'employees' give lap dances to any customer who requests one)? What about taxes? For those who choose independent contractor, how much do you have to budget for work expenses, health insurance, retirement/savings, 'slow months', and other costs that could be affected by becoming an employee?
For all other strip club workers (DJs, bouncers, house moms, etc.) - would you rather become salaried employees or continue to work for tips?
We already know the club owners hate the idea of making the dancers employees. I can understand their perspective. The average cost of health coverage per employee was just under $10,000 in 2011 - imagine the health care costs for clubs with 50-100+ girls. When you factor in wages, payroll taxes, insurance on employees, and other employee benefits (paid vacation, sick days, maternity leave), etc. - most clubs will go out of business immediately.



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