Need some tax advice!

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Dear Editor:

I would like to seek some information from others in the industry about a situation I am facing: My husband and I have two highway tractors, one driven by my husband and the other by a driver. The driver in question worked for us Aug. 2001 to Jan. 2003 as a driver contractor (self-employed). He fixed the rate, accepted by us. This fall, we were contacted by Revenue Canada saying the driver has decided he really was an employee in 2001. Unfortunately for us, Revenue Canada has agreed with him. The question really is one of whether or not the driver is in an insurable and pensionable employment.

Over the years, government has gone to great lengths to encourage workers who have been laid off or are unemployed to start their own business. Now it seems that many of these self-employed workers are being faced with the idea that they are not on their own, but are actually employees.

I assume the problem the government has with these workers is they fail to report taxes, but whose fault is this?

Why would the person hiring these contractors be forced to pay employment (source deduction) costs when it wasn’t part of the contract?

We already are forced to pay WSIB for subcontractors – another issue.

How can we possibly maintain an equitable business if the government can come back four years later and change the playing field? How could they believe a worker only realized four years later that he was an employee?

If the government is so concerned, they should set up guidelines and a T-slip for anyone who hires subcontractors.

These T-slips would be no problem to prepare as you already do your income statements anyways. Should the workers be considered insurable, I can’t see that this is a good business decision, even for the government. If this worker decides to claim EI benefits, the benefits far exceed any money they will receive from the source deductions.

Historically, the appeals for this type of situation are not successful, so I don’t have a great deal of faith in the outcome. However, this still doesn’t make it fair and reasonable practice by the federal government.

I look forward to any suggestions from your readers.

Sandra Brule

36 St. Claire Ave.

Nepean, Ont.

K2G 2A2

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