Venango Newspapers v. Unemployment Compensation Board of Review

In Venango Newspapers v. Unemployment Compensation Board of Review, 158 Pa. Commw. 379, 631 A.2d 1384 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1993), the Court held that newspaper carriers were not employees of the newspaper but, rather, independent contractors. The Court found a lack of control because the carriers used their own vehicles, were not formally trained and were free of direct, day-to-day supervision. The carriers were expected to meet deadlines. They had to pick up their newspapers by 12:30 a.m. and deliver them by 6:30 a.m. They were also expected to do their jobs in a "prompt" and "dependable" way. Venango Newspapers, 631 A.2d at 1386. The Court concluded that newspaper delivery persons were independent contractors rather than employees. The Court noted that the newspaper delivery persons were not subject to any training, were not required to attend any meetings, had no direct day-to-day supervision as they went about their daily deliveries in whatever manner they chose, used their own vehicles to deliver the product and their payment was dependent on the number of newspapers delivered rather than an hourly wage. The Court concluded that the newspaper delivery persons were free to perform their services for anyone who wished to contract with them, even competitors, and that delivering newspapers or any product is not, by its nature, limited to a single employer.