“A class action lawsuit has been launched by a small group of Yelp reviewers, trying to make the (laughable and ridiculous) case that reviewers on the site are actually unpaid employees who are now demanding compensation. It appears that they’re hoping the recent success of a few lawsuits involving ‘unpaid internships’ will now carry over to user-generated content sites as well. To put it mildly, this is incredibly stupid.” [Mike Masnick, TechDirt]
5 Comments
It’s Like Suing Somebody For Standing Next To You (Yelp Reviewers Launch Class Action Suit)
“From the wtf dept”…
It sure sounds stupid, but so do half of the theories behind the successful suits (at least successful enough to be settled at some point) that are posted here….
You know Walter, I figure I have forwarded a few hundred links for your site…kind of forming a…contract…if you will…I think each link probably took me at least 30 seconds to review to see if it was at least pertinent…I am due (hold on…300×30, carry the 1, plus penalties and interest) somewhere in the neighborhood of $10,000 in past “wages”…please contact me to resolve this to avoid any costly litigation and attorney fees…:)
Although the fun part will be when the IRS decides that all of that user-generated content represents work-for-hire revenue-generating activity and therefore the site should pay income tax on it.
Hey, Walt, how about paying your loyal readers who comment on your blog minimum wage?
I think Walter pays us more than we’re worth. Some of us. Not me.
Bob