The Claims Assert That Arise Illegally Profited by Unlawfully Misclassifying Customer Service Agents as Independent Contractors Rather than Employees, Denying Workers Money and Benefits

Morgan & Morgan is investigating allegations of wage theft against Arise Virtual Solutions, Inc. on behalf of customer service representatives. Arise is a customer service support company that contracts with a multitude of companies to outsource their customer service needs. The investigation has revealed that Arise improperly denied customer service agents minimum wage, overtime, and other benefits by misclassifying them as independent contractors rather than employees. Arise’s scheme is believed to have injured tens of thousands of workers.

“We belive that Arise has been constructed to intentionally flout wage and hour laws and to avoid paying workers the minimum wage, overtime, and other benefits that employees are typically entitled to. Companies like Arise cannot escape the application of wage and hour laws by labeling itself a gig economy company and/or labeling its workers contractors if they are truly employees under the law as we believe. We will hold companies like Arise accountable if they shortchange workers.”

Worker misclassification is illegal, and occurs where an employer deprives employees minimum wage, overtime, and/or other benefits typically earned by employees, by classifying them as “independent contractors,” who are generally not entitled to the same protections.

Arise is a customer support services company that operates in the gig economy and employs a workforce of customer support agents, many of whom work remotely from their homes. Arise contracts with many Fortune 500 clients that are looking to cut costs by outsourcing call-center services. Arise maintains an online platform that allows its clients’ customer service calls to be routed to an Arise agent to resolve the issue. Arise has employed thousands of customer support agents nationwide and subjects them to the same common scheme. 

Our investigation has revealed that Arise has systemically misclassified its agents as independent contractors, denying them their rights to minimum wage, overtime, another benefits. We believe the agents are legally employees because Arise has the power to hire and fire them, determines their rate of pay, requires agents to meet with supervisors and managers, and controls agents with a digital surveillance apparatus that tracks their performance down to the precise second. Moreover, Arise’s agents do the work at the very heart of the company’s business—Arise could not operate its customer support business without its customer support agents. In other words, we believe that the “econmic reality” test utilized by federal courts, as applied to the Customer Service Agents, renders them employees rather than true contractors under the law. 

Arise uses numerous methods to unlawfully short agents the wages they rightfully earned. Many agents work at hourly rates that are blatantly below the applicable minimum wage. Arise also further cuts into agents’ pay by charging them for training and certification fees, requiring agents to purchase their own work equipment, requiring agents to work unpaid hours (such as meeting with supervisors), and docking agent pay for failing to meet perforance goals. Additionally, it appears that Arise does not pay any of its Customer Service Agents overtime premiums when they work overtime hours.

In these lawsuits, Morgan & Morgan intends to seek damages for wages owed to agents as a result of Arise’s minimum wage, and overtime violations.

If you are a current Customer Service Agent, or previously worked for Arise as a Customer Service Agent, you may have a claim for unpaid wages, including minimum wages and overtime wages, as well as other damages.

Contact us for a free consultation at (888) OVERTIME [888-683-7846] to discuss your rights today.