Professional Documents
Culture Documents
1. I am over twenty one and competent to make this declaration, and I make these
statements based on personal knowledge. I am the plaintiff in this case along with my
Solutions, Inc. is a Microsoft registered partner. I make this declaration for both myself
2. I intend to demonstrate that what this case is really about is the way so many
of these large companies routinely supplement their work force by soliciting the services
of Independent Contractors solely to obtain the benefit of getting highly skilled workers
proficient in the latest technology without having to pay them any employee benefits as
well as avoiding having to pay the employer-side taxes for these workers. They then treat
them as de-facto employees by locking them into set schedules and requiring of them
things that are directly in violation of both state and federal law which allows the
complain about the fact that they aren’t being allowed to perform in the manner
prescribed by law, they’re then threatened with the revocation of their contract and in
some cases with being blacklisted. Purely due to size and financial advantage these
companies routinely treat the Independent Contractor as little more than an at-will
employee even though there is a signed contract to the contrary. With no agencies to
enforce compliance with the laws and the only recourse being to file a private lawsuit,
unless the courts hold these companies accountable and require them to honor the
commitments they’ve made, then these contracts aren’t worth the paper they’re printed
on, especially when the Independent Contractor is then threatened with sanctions and
2005 to fill a fill a need with his client Cingular Wireless for a SQL Server
b. My last day at Microsoft was Friday April 8, 2005 and Mr. Vivaldi had
and giving consent for a background check. I was offered the contract
which I accepted.
d. My first day of work was on Monday April 18, 2005 and I was scheduled
up until June 1, 2005 when the whole Enterprise on Demand team was
had been told that I would be required to work a set 9:00 to 5:00 schedule
I would have declined the project. I had just finished a 3 month project at
the 405 freeway during rush-hour although that wasn’t a problem for me
personally. The Microsoft Live Meeting group for which I had been
by giving us the freedom to work any schedule and in any manner each of
us saw fit. My hours while there began anywhere from 10:30 am. 12:00
by acquiring contracts for Aegis and as it’s sole employee performing the
work, since 2002. I know what the laws are that govern the work Aegis
Aegis’s employee.
f. During the week of June 19, 2005 things at work began becoming more
2005 after having not shown up the previous Friday. This was part of my
reasons for having doubts and beginning to look elsewhere for a new
day morning to inform me once again that there was no check for me. I
for an interim remedy. All I received was the letter marked item number
Contents” which stated that “due to an account error” they owed me the
amount of $4000 which should have been payable on June 16, 2005. It
also promised me that a check in that amount would be sent via overnight
delivery to my Federal Way address the next day. The package was not
delivered the next day as promised and was located by Mr. Vivaldi on
Monday.
paying my invoices on time, dropping off the new cashier’s checks, etc.
decided at that time I would not even bother going in for only 2 hours of
work, however I kept in close phone contact with the company advising
them of what I was doing and when I thought I’d make it into the office. I
didn’t have enough time to locate my old phone bills, but I know I have
copies of them and can produce them in time for trial to prove I didn’t just
i. Monday June 24, 2005 is one of the two days that Cingular claims I failed
to show for work. The situation that prevented me from making it in that
workday on Monday June 24, 2005. Or better yet, if they had paid me
when the invoices where actually due which was the previously week I
checks and wasting time running errands while I should have been
working.
j. I took Tuesday June 28, 2005 off due to exhaustion caused by the stress of
dealing with both Cingular and TekSystems. I did phone TekSystems and
let them know. Again I don’t have a copy of my phone bill immediately
TekSystems would indicate that the reason I was no longer working with
be untrue. When I asked Justin Born about the 5 days notice to Aegis
invoice to Sean McGraw of TekSystems via FAX anyway and marked the
l. To get to the core of the problem between myself and the defendants, I
http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=99921,00.html:
A general rule is that you, the payer, have the right to control or direct
only the result of the work done by an independent contractor, and not
Cingular Wireless regarding whether or not they filed W-2 and/or 1099
IRS tax forms for myself and Aegis IT Solutions. They have not as yet
responded. Their answer however should help to support our position that
as a true Independent Contractor that neither Gil Ramirez nor anyone from
10:30 a.m. each morning. No complaints were received about either the
Contractor I /Aegis had the right to set my own schedule and wanted to
continue to work the schedule under which I had accepted the contract.
g. Over the next several weeks I was badgered, insulted and defamed for
to the schedule change demand. During this time I kept the 9:00 to 5:00
schedule, not always arriving exactly at 9:00 due to traffic on the 405
no such thing as being late when you’re in control of your own schedule
time.
4. If I had never worked a later schedule and then events occurred that made it
defendants to allow this particular schedule even though they have no legal
right to do so. But this is the schedule that I as well as everyone else began
with and many of them (Ben, Wendy and Chris) continued to do so even after
the schedule change. I /Aegis was the only independent Contractor on the
team, everyone else was a W-2 employee of TekSystems yet I was required to
work a set schedule while many of the W-2 employees whose schedules they
5. Because of all of these stated facts I maintain that Cingular and TekSystems
were not within their legal rights to have me removed from the project. The
contract states that I can be removed for “any valid legal reason”. By
defendants own admissions, from my first day on the project I was allowed to
work a flexible schedule. The fact that they lied by saying my work was
issue and especially since they didn’t enforce the new schedule upon everyone
else does not constitute a “valid legal reason” for terminating the contract and
1. On page 3 Lines 21 - 23 Ms. Foster, the attorney for the defendants and one of the
declarants states that “Neither the Primary not he Secondary Agreements contains
schedule or any individual”. The second part of this statement is true. As has
Contractor (IC) relationship any terms not specifically spelled out are left to the
discretion of the Independent Contractor. The first part of the statement however
“flextime schedule, meaning that they were expected to work core hours with
some “grace period”; that is, minor flexibility to account for traffic or other events
which might cause them to be a few minutes later than the 9:00 a.m. core start
of all if you Google the term “flextime” and “definition” you will find that almost
all of the definitions indicate that flextime applies to “employees”. I was not a
flexitime, there is typically a core period of the day when employees are expected
to be at work (for example, between 10 am and 4pm), whilst the rest of the
working day is "flexitime", in which employees can choose when they work,
subject to achieving total daily, weekly or monthly hours in the region of what the
employer expects, and subject to the necessary work being done.” I am entitled to
negotiate a time period, especially in the beginning, where I am there during the
time that others with whom I need to work or collaborate or learn from are there.
Once I’ve acquired all the information needed to allow me to work independently
then I do that as much as possible until I need to consult or confer with others
again. Declarant Born’s statement that a “grace period” was allowed as long as
the person running late let Cingular/TekSystems know is just another indication
of the defendants inability, reluctance and outright refusal to relinquish control
just in time to take her lunch break” [Ramirez], b. “disregarded the directive and
continued to arrive late” [Born] and c. ‘on two occasions she failed to come to
a. First of all since I’ve been working for Aegis I have not begun work
earlier than 10:00 a.m. This is by choice and allowed by Aegis under the
IC laws that govern the contracts that Aegis has operated under.
hungry until around 1:00 to 2:00 p.m and I try to only eat when I’m
bring something for me to eat I‘ll eat at my desk while working. Lastly
the few times I went to lunch shortly after arriving were times when the
entire team had lunch together such as in the farewell lunch for team
member Chad who left the team to go on to job. This generally would
occur anywhere from 11:30 to 12:00. Ironically during this farewell lunch
Chad told me that Gil had gotten rid of another person by the name of
Patricia for doing the things that I am alleged to have done including
c. As previously stated, the first of those two days, Monday June 27, 2005
not for their actions would not have occurred at all. Once again I can
provide by trial time cell phone records and probably emails to dispute this
4. Page 6 Lines 16.5 to Line 5 on the following Page 7 reveals several of the lies told
inquiry for clarification as to the reason for my separation from the work I was
terminated by the client. The client no longer needed her skill set.” The client
Cingular via Gil Rameriz did terminate my involvement with the project, however
the project itself continued on. Cingular’s requirements for my position did not
change as indicated by the fact that the project didn’t end. Defendant Gil Ramirez
contrived reason for removing me from the project. I have in my possession the
job which is another lie. That document is attached and marked as exhibit _____.
5. Page 10 Lines 13.5 to 15.5. Declarants statement that my “failure to do the job
was a perfectly ‘valid legal reason’ for TekSystems and/or Cingular to require
Cingular” is untrue. The only “failure” that occurred was defendants “failure” to
bully me into complying with their illegal demands that I work during the hours
of 9:00 – 5:00, their “failure” to know and understand the legal definition of an
Independent Contractor and their “failure” to comply with the law which governs
the manner in which Independent Contractors are allowed to work. They just
can’t seem to understand that the benefits that they obtain by freeing themselves
of the financial burdens of having to pay employee benefits and payroll taxes is a
Contractor. It’s the relinquishing control part that they don’t seem to understand
and therefore never implemented which caused this whole problem. They have
traditionally obtained the benefits while maintaining control over the contractor
which is a violation of the rights of the contractor as well as labor laws. No one at
Cingular or TekSystems had the right to make any demands of that sort that they
TekSystems.
contracted with Aegis to provide some of that personnel. During the performance
of those contracts Cingular decided it needed people during core working hours.
Akmal’s refusal to work during those hours was the valid legal reason Cingular
demanded her removal from the position”. Cingular decided it needed people
during these core hours only AFTER the contract was entered into between
TekSystems and Aegis and only AFTER the working hours became an issue. The
original contract was not amended to include this change of schedule as spelled
out per the contract, therefore the schedule change was never legally added to the
contract meaning it was neither legal or valid. This means that Cingular’s so-
called “valid and legal reason” was neither valid nor legal and was in fact
contrived.
TekSystems and Cingular admit that they had told Akmal that her schedule could
be somewhat flexible, neither defendant intended that she could work hours that
were entirely for her own convenience. Ramirez Dec., 9. Born Dec., 4.” This
the law under which they are conducting business. My schedule and who it
they wanted an EOD team whose hours and time and lives they could control in
anyway they saw fit then the right and LEGAL thing to have done would have
been to staff the team with Cingular W-2 employees. True this would have the
insurance, etc. but Cingular would have been fully within their rights to demand
anything they wanted of their employees regarding when work began and when
work ended. But that’s not what they did so since Cingular didn’t have to incur
all those expenses by opting to staff the EOD team with Independent Contractors,
by law they are required to relinquish control over everything except the end
results of the work produced per the IRS’s website previously cited. If Cingular
and TekSystems are still in doubt as the validity of this statement IRS form SS-8
can be filed which requests that the IRS conduct an investigation to determine the
actual status of workers. In this case it would have to determine the status of the
entire EOD team and if it finds that Cingular had erroneously classified it’s
workers then Cingular could be found liable for back taxes as well as workers
compensation for the entire EOD team going back to it inception. Indeed this is
why Microsoft ended up settling out-of-court after a seven year battle which
ways.