North Dakota Code 39-34-03.1 – Transportation network company driver – Independent contractor
1. As used in this section:
Terms Used In North Dakota Code 39-34-03.1
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Organization: includes a foreign or domestic association, business trust, corporation, enterprise, estate, joint venture, limited liability company, limited liability partnership, limited partnership, partnership, trust, or any legal or commercial entity. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- Person: means an individual, organization, government, political subdivision, or government agency or instrumentality. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- written: include "typewriting" and "typewritten" and "printing" and "printed" except in the case of signatures and when the words are used by way of contrast to typewriting and printing. See North Dakota Code 1-01-37
a. “Transportation network company” means a person that:
(1) Maintains a digital network to facilitate services by transportation network company drivers to a person seeking those services; and
(2) Accepts requests from the public only through the organization‘s digital network and not by telephone, facsimile, or in person at a retail location.
b. “Transportation network company driver” does not include a person transporting freight, sealed or closed envelopes, boxes, parcels, or other similar sealed or closed containers for compensation. The term means a person that:
(1) Enters a written agreement with a transportation network company to use the transportation network company’s digital network to connect with an individual seeking services offered by the transportation network company driver; (2) Performs services for a person through a transportation network company’s digital network in exchange for compensation or payment; and
(3) Does not perform services at a physical business location operated by the transportation network company in the state.
2. A transportation network company driver is an independent contractor and not an employee of a transportation network company if the transportation network company:
a. Enters an agreement with the transportation network company driver that the transportation network company driver is an independent contractor and not an employee of the transportation network company.
b. Does not unilaterally prescribe specific hours during which the transportation network company driver must be available to accept service requests submitted through the transportation network company’s digital network.
c. Does not prohibit the transportation network company driver from engaging in outside employment or performing services through other transportation network companies except while the transportation network company driver is engaged in performing services through the transportation network company’s digital network.
d. May not terminate the contract of the transportation network company driver for a driver’s refusal to accept a specific transportation service or delivery service request.
e. Does not prohibit the transportation network company driver from using a vehicle with an internal combustion engine.