VBO Nation announced the launch of a petition to protect the rights of Freelancers and Virtual Business Owners (VBOs) are under attack across the country. It started with California’s AB5 legislation which effectively made freelancing illegal starting on Jan. 1, 2020.
Companies that hire freelancers have reportedly blacklisted future hires in the state of California as a result of AB5. Similar national legislation referred to as the PRO Act (HR 2474) recently passed the U.S. House of Representatives and moved on to the Senate.
In response, VBO Nation, an emerging voice and advocate for freelancers and Virtual Business Owners (VBOs), launched a petition to stop new legislation from devastating the careers of freelancers and independent workers across the country.
“As an advocate and unified voice for freelancers, we have no choice but to aggressively defend the rights of independent workers,” said Tom Poole, founder of VBO Nation.
While viewed by some as legislation focused on helping Uber and Lyft drivers, the crushing impact of these laws has had a crippling effect on the millions of individuals that have chosen to become freelancers/VBOs.
The proposed national legislation (HR 2474) has the potential to affect 57 million freelancers who contribute more than a trillion dollars to the U.S. economy.
According to Poole, “We are working with freelancers, corporations, special interest groups, and elected officials across the country to bring an end to this disastrous legislation. Its potential impact on millions of independent workers who are contributing trillions of dollars to the U.S. economy is staggering and irresponsible.”
