Winning the Working Class: Fighting for Workers Rights of All Workers in 2026 Elections and Independent Contractors the Key
By Marc V. Avelar
May 31, 2025
Introduction
Over the past 5 years, I have been engaged in the real economic freedom issue of workers rights. On April 30, I testified before the Illinois House Labor & Commerce Committee at a subject matter hearing on HB 1311, which concerns workers classification and in particular, the classifying of workers who choose to be 1099 independent contractors.
For the past 2 ½ years, I’ve worked with state Representative Suzanne Ness (D, Crystal Lake) and sitting side-by-side in Springfield on April 30, we presented our case why 1099 independent contractors need protections from extreme elements of the far left trying to strip workers of their right to market their labor the way the worker wants.
Through my work over the past 5 years, through social media, I’ve developed many professional relationships for this cause. Of the many great people I’ve met in the past 5 years, two were testifying with Representative Ness and me on April 30 via ZOOM: New Jersey-based independent contractor and grassroots leader Kim Kavin and Dr. Liya Palagashvili, senior research fellow at Mercatus Center of George Mason University.
This article will consist primarily of my oral testimony and part of my written testimony to introduce the readers to what this fight really is, and why you may not have heard of its far-reaching impacts if Illinois were to go the way the far left has done in California, or arecurrently trying to do in New Jersey.
From my testimony of April 30
To Chairman Marcus C. Evans, Jr. and Members of the IL House Labor & Commerce Committee
Thank you, Chairman Evans and Ranking Member Dan Ugaste, for the opportunity to address the committee today.
I’m Marc Avelar, a 60-year-old freelancer, entrepreneur, solopreneur from Algonquin, Illinois, who started freelance writing in 2019 for a local, long-established political blog in McHenry County.
Under current Illinois law, I had the freedom to set up my business, and choose to be a 1099 independent contractor and in 2022, and was able to earn a living on my own terms, from home!
I am unique yet no different from the estimated 2.78 million 1099s in Illinois or the 72 million 1099s across the country, exercising my freedom to, as national independent contracting subject matter expert Kim Kavin said in her congressional testimony on April 19, 2023, “to hang out one’s shingle”, and be my own boss (Written testimony of Kim Kavin, April 19, 2023).
My freedom to be a 1099 independent contractor has been under threat for the past several years as extreme elements attempt to regulate/control how working class Americans can market their labor to be their own boss. The false narratives cited for well-intentioned but harmful regulations is to protect independent contractors from “misclassification”. While there are bad actors, the vast majority of clients of independent contractors are law abiding businesses.
Quantifying misclassification has been a challenge both in Illinois and in other states. The state of Minnesota, through the Attorney General’s Advisory Task Force on Misclassification formed in 2023 with only one independent contractor, a lady named Brittany VanDerBill. In an early 2025 interview, she shared this insight trying to quantify misclassification:
“I repeatedly asked the task force and presenters for data when they described certain industries that are ‘highly impacted’ by misclassification. I was told I’d get that data but never got it, so I kept asking.
“I finally learned that there is no data—the task force is basing this classification of highly impacted industries on anecdotes and things they hear.” (“The Lone Voice”, Freelance Busting, January 9, 2025, https://www.freelancebusting.com/p/the-lone-voice)
I’ve experienced similar lack of quantifianble empirical data here in Illinois on the enforcement of the current Illinois Employment Classification Act (820 ILCS 185). Through Representative Ness’ office, I’ve tried to seek the number of actions taken by the Illinois Attorney General’s office and for over a year, no data has been shared.
Illinois’ current Employee Classification Act has been on the books since 2008 for the construction industry. Over the past 17 years, there must be empirical data how many enforcement actions were taken and the results of those actions.
I challenge the committee that if anyone uses the “misclassification” narrative to restrict workers rights of independent contractors, ask them to show you the data and the research. Certain advocates try to share dubious, outdated data and/or embellished claims.
Please members of this committee, apply discernment.
Real, blatant misclassification by bad actors must be enforced by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage & Hour Division or the Illinois Attorney General and the bad actors punished. But not at the expense of the millions of 1099 independent contractors who choose to freelance and their law abiding clients.
Some federal lawmakers claim that misclassification costs workers nearly $4 billion a year in lost wages and benefits. The U.S. Department of Labor, after four years of prioritizing enforcement of misclassification during the Biden administration, only actually recovered $41 million for 28,000 workers out of an independent contractors workforce of over 72 million (“Attention DOGE”, Freelance Busting, December 23, 2024, https://www.freelancebusting.com/p/attention-doge).
The details are everything.
The state of California passed the jobs killing Assembly Bill 5 (AB5) which applied the “strict ABC test” for worker classification. Published research since the law’s signing in late 2019 prove fewer job opportunities are available because independent workers cannot be classified as independent contractors across 600 professions.
With the inauguration of the 2nd Trump administration, one might think the threat to 1099s had ended. Applied discernment shows the threat did not end as the Trump administration through its appointment of Lori Chavez-DeRemer as U.S. Labor secretary has not embraced independent contractors as the “working class” based on her congressional record.
The opportunity for the Illinois General Assembly and Governor JB Pritzker to embrace the independent contractors as part of the “working class” not only in Illinois but across the nation is before the committee with the passage of HB 1311.
Working with Representative Ness, we drafted the first version of HB 1311 during the 103rd General Assembly in January of 2023.
Amending the current Illinois Employee Classification Act by passing the simple policy in HB 1311 codifies into Illinois law the industries not covered for worker classification under current Illinois Employee Classification Act. Currently, workers for whom the current law does not apply are classified under the “common law test” for tax status currently used by the federal Internal Revenue Service, sometimes called the “IRS test”.
Put simply, the current common law is good, but statutory law is better and needed. An example of an Illinois-based business being at risk by a California AB5 law with a strict ABC test impacted a member of this committee.
On August 31, 2023, Representative Ness hosted an independent contractors roundtable in Carpentersville with Chairman Evans participating in-person with several local leaders, both in-person and through ZOOM.
One of the participants via ZOOM was the previously mentioned Kim Kavin, 4 ½ months after her congressional testimony defending independent contracting in Washington.
This exchange, transcribed from the ZOOM meeting recording was pivotal:
Chairman Evans: I'm a contract…appraiser, so I don't want to be an employee because my schedule…so I work for two appraisal companies. I'm a contractor. You know it's crystal clear.
Ms Kavin: You would actually fail the ABC test…pushed through in California and is trying to push through nationwide. You said you're an independent appraiser who does work for multiple appraisal companies right?
Chairman Evans: Yes
Ms Kavin: You fail the test just like I do. They did make the language in California such that if you are in the same line of business as the company cutting you a check…it is now illegal to operate as an independent contractor. That's what they're pushing. That's what this is about. That's what we're trying to stop. They're trying to say that you are a misclassified employee.
“That’s what we’re trying to stop.”
Businesses, and local governments, need independent contractors to be successful, particularly start-up businesses.
Businesses, be they local government or private sector, shouldn’t have to manage with threats from Washington be they rules, executive orders or acts of Congress. HB 1311 will take away the unnecessary risks of extreme agendas forcing authoritarian will and protect workers to pursue their dreams, market their labor the way the workers want to market their labor, including the freedom to be our own boss if we choose.
Passage of HB 1311 will define the working class, through statute, and include 1099 independent contractors. It’s in your power starting at this committee, to implement midwestern sensibility and common sense, and set a new, true example W2 employees and 1099 independent contractors are all in the working class, even as the Trump administration through its first 100 days failed to embrace independent contractors.
I welcome your questions.
Thank you.
During Questioning
While most of the questions from the committee at the subject matter hearing were directed to the assistant director of the Illinois Department of Labor, a question from state Representative Harry Benton (D, Plainfield) had to be responded to by me when he hinted contractors are trying to get around the law concerning worker classification hinting more regulation needed.
The exchange between Representative Benton and me was vigorous and professional. I pointed out the California AB5 law’s implementation in 2020 was real and concerns of independent contractors are valid based on fact. I pointed out over 600 professions were negatively impacted by AB5. Benton asked for proof and the names of the 600 professions. I deferred the empirical metrics to ZOOM witness Dr. Palagashvili who, with her team at Mercatus, had completed the research.
While I could name from memory some of the 600 professions negatively impacted by AB5, I committed to follow-up with the entire list of 600 industries, which I promptly sent the next morning via email (the list embedded in The Hill article from a former California resident).
Representative Benton ended his exchange with me saying “We are NOT California!” which was honestly, music to my ears given in the 5 years since AB5 was implemented, Illinois has not even considered such a drastic freelance-busting law and I will help ensure that does not happen.
Conclusion: Since the April 30 Subject Matter Hearing
As pointed out in my testimony, the Trump administration, through its first 100 days (April 29), had not embraced the independent contractor as part of the working class. On Day 102 (May 1), the media reported the U.S. Department of Labor would halt the Biden administration independent contractor rule implemented on March 11, 2024.
But the real fireworks came from New Jersey when the outgoing administration of Governor Phil Murphy (D) began implementing a state rule using the strict ABC test that’s “Worse than AB5” through executive fiat.
2025 is an election year for the state of New Jersey and Governor Murphy is term limited. Leading Republican, and Trump-endorsed, Jack Ciattarelli posted on social media he’ll repeal any NJ rule against independent contracting.
The primary election in New Jersey is June 10, and the general election, based on polling, will be between Ciattarelli and Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill (D, NJ-11).
Congresswoman Sherrill has a freelance-busting voting record having twice voted for the strict ABC test in federal legislation in her 4 terms in the U.S. House. The 2021 gubernatorial race was unexpectedly close when Ciattarelli nearly flipped the governor’s mansion coming within 4 percentage points. For an open seat and having run before, and with Ciattarelli clearly on the side of all working-class people through his commitment to protect 1099 independent contractors, a new set of swing voters could emerge in the November 4, 2025, general election in the Garden State.
As for the co-witnesses who participated with Representative Ness and me via ZOOM on April 30, within 3 weeks of the Illinois hearing, both Ms. Kavin and Dr. Palagashvili were testifying to Congress before the House Workforce Protections Subcommittee hearing entitled, “Empowering the Modern Worker”.
Ms. Kavin’s article from her Substack page here and explains all one needs to know, and the hearing was a win for independent contractors.
How Kavin handled the Democrats’ witness from the far-left National Employment Law Project was literally a clinic in scrutiny and discernment, as well as maneuvering your opposition into a trap and then springing the trap. She details what she did here.
May all candidates, from both parties, watch and learn from what is happening in New Jersey and may the entire working class, including 1099 independent contractors, be embraced by all!
Marc Avelar lives in Dundee Township and served as an elected trustee for the village of Algonquin in the late 1990s. In 2022, Avelar was appointed to the Dundee Township Mental Health Board & has served as president of the Board for the past 2 ½ years. The opinions are his own.
