Misclassified as a Contractor?
A Label Isn't the Law
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Your partner on the path toYour partner toyour full severance.
They called you a contractor to owe you nothing. If you worked like an employee, the law often agrees. Mirza Law gets back what you're owed.
Do not sign anything.
One signature settles everything: your notice, your bonus, your benefits, your claim. Get the offer checked first. The review is free.
Your offer letter, annotated.
Dear Employee,
"This offer represents two (2) weeks' pay per year of service"
There is no weeks-per-year rule. Courts set severance by your age, your role, and your length of service. For most people it's measured in months.
"Payment has been calculated based on your base salary"
Your bonus, commissions, benefits, and pension count too. An offer built on salary alone is almost always too low.
"This offer is made in accordance with the Employment Standards Act"
The minimum the law allows is the floor, not the real number. Most employees are owed the common law amount, which sits on top of it.
"This offer remains open until Friday at 5:00 p.m."
Their deadline, not yours. Your claim is good for two years. Deadlines like this exist to get a signature before you get advice.
"In exchange, you agree to release all claims against the company"
The only sentence in the letter you can't undo. Everything above it can still change. This one can't, once you sign.
Sincerely,
Human Resources
"You don't decide if you're a contractor, and neither does your company. If you look like an employee and work like one, the law says you are."
As Featured In
From offer
to what you're owed
Free review
Send your termination letter, your offer, and your employment contract. We read the fine print and work out what you're really owed, not just the legal minimum.
Negotiation
We send your employer the real number in writing, with the court cases that back it up. Most claims settle right here, with no courtroom. We push until the offer matches what you're owed.
Resolution
We check the fine print on the release, you sign, and your settlement lands in your bank account. This chapter closes and you move forward on your terms.
What could you be owed?
Courts decide reasonable notice using your age, position, tenure, and the job market. Run your numbers.
Your severance isn't just salary.
The estimate above is computed on salary alone. Severance is owed on what you actually earned: average bonus, commission, benefits continuation, pension match. If it was part of your pay, it's part of your severance.
The free review prices every line.
Amir Mirza
Managing Attorney
Licensed: 2017Independent contractor or employee? Ontario, explained
The label doesn't decide it, the reality does
Being called a contractor doesn't make you one. If you show up regularly, take their direction, use their tools, and they're your main source of work, the law often treats you as an employee no matter what your contract says. Years as a so-called contractor don't erase that. If you were let go with nothing, you may be owed real severance.
Paying your own taxes or being incorporated doesn't settle it
Sending invoices, paying your own taxes, even running everything through your own company, none of that decides the question on its own. Plenty of real employees are asked to invoice through a corporation, and it changes nothing about their rights. What matters is the real relationship: who controls the work, who you work for, how long it's gone on.
The in-between category: dependent contractor
There's a middle ground the law recognizes. If roughly half or more of your income comes from one company, you may be a dependent contractor, financially dependent on them. If they cut you off, they can owe you reasonable notice, sometimes as much as an employee would get. Being a contractor on paper isn't the end of the question.
Signing “independent contractor” doesn't waive your rights
You don't get to sign away being an employee, and neither does your employer. A piece of paper calling you a contractor doesn't override how you actually worked. Courts look past the label at who controlled your hours, whose tools you used, and whether you worked mostly for one company.
What misclassified time is worth
If you were really an employee the whole time, the claim can be substantial:
The contractor label can hide a real claim. Worth checking before you accept you're owed nothing.
Let go with nothing because you're “just a contractor”?
“You're a contractor” is often the first thing an employer says and the last thing that holds up. If the law sees you as an employee or a dependent contractor, they can't end it with nothing. The review is free, and we work on contingency.
Our Clients
Mirza Law has earned 4.8 stars on Google, and
is also top-rated by Best Lawyers Canada, TrustAnalytica, and others
I couldn't be happier with the legal representation I received from Mirza Law. Amir negotiated a significantly higher severance package from what I was initially offered. I’m very grateful for the outcome. He explained every step of the process and was responsive throughout my case.
I highly recommend Amir Mirza if your long-term disability insurance claim was denied and you are considering taking legal action. Amir provided me with several options and explained how the process works very thoroughly. He took the time to answer all of my questions and concerns and always responded in a timely manner. I appreciated his caring approach during a stressful time in my life and never felt pressured to pursue litigation when speaking with him.
Mirza Law was professional, responsive, and easy to work with. The team provided clear guidance throughout the process and made everything straightforward to understand. I appreciated their support and would recommend them to anyone looking for reliable legal assistance.
I can't say enough great things about my experience with this firm. Amir was incredibly helpful and secured a much better settlement than I was initially offered. Couldn't have asked for more. I would definitely recommend Mirza Law.
My wife's long term disability benefits were cut off after two years and the team at Mirza Law helped us to get them back. We were working with Amir who dealt with our insurance company directly. He took the time to explain the whole process and laid out our options so we always understood where things stood.
I reached out to this law firm after being denied by Manulife for my long term disability benefits. Amir is genuinely one of the kindest and caring lawyers I have ever met. He guided me through this very difficult period in my life. I understood each part of the process and never felt rushed.
I couldn't be happier with the legal representation I received from Mirza Law. Amir negotiated a significantly higher severance package from what I was initially offered. I’m very grateful for the outcome. He explained every step of the process and was responsive throughout my case.
I highly recommend Amir Mirza if your long-term disability insurance claim was denied and you are considering taking legal action. Amir provided me with several options and explained how the process works very thoroughly. He took the time to answer all of my questions and concerns and always responded in a timely manner. I appreciated his caring approach during a stressful time in my life and never felt pressured to pursue litigation when speaking with him.
Mirza Law was professional, responsive, and easy to work with. The team provided clear guidance throughout the process and made everything straightforward to understand. I appreciated their support and would recommend them to anyone looking for reliable legal assistance.
I can't say enough great things about my experience with this firm. Amir was incredibly helpful and secured a much better settlement than I was initially offered. Couldn't have asked for more. I would definitely recommend Mirza Law.
My wife's long term disability benefits were cut off after two years and the team at Mirza Law helped us to get them back. We were working with Amir who dealt with our insurance company directly. He took the time to explain the whole process and laid out our options so we always understood where things stood.
I reached out to this law firm after being denied by Manulife for my long term disability benefits. Amir is genuinely one of the kindest and caring lawyers I have ever met. He guided me through this very difficult period in my life. I understood each part of the process and never felt rushed.
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Contractor Status Review
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