Scott Henricks @Scottahenricks

You can clock out of the jobsite. Apparently, you can't clock out at home. 😂🔨 Happy Saturday, contractors! #ContractorLife #ConstructionHumor #ContractorProblems #UniqueRisk

"I pay him 1099 so he's an independent contractor." That's not how California sees it. The payment method doesn't determine the classification. The working relationship does. California's ABC test requires three things to treat a worker as an independent contractor. Most 1099 arrangements on construction sites fail the second one — the work has to be outside your usual course of business. Framing contractor pays a framer 1099? That's your usual course of business. He's your employee at audit. Doesn't matter what you wrote on the check. Follow for more of what the system isn't designed to tell you. #CaliforniaContractor #WorkersComp #1099 #ABCTest #ContractorInsurance #CaliforniaWorkersComp #ConstructionBusiness

My heart is with San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano tonight. To every family away from home not knowing what they'll return to, you're not alone. Shelters are open at both community centers. Thank you to every firefighter out in these winds. Please check on your neighbors.

Five days on the 1099 illusion. Here's what it comes down to. California has one of the strictest worker classification tests in the country. The ABC test doesn't care about your payment method, your agreements, or how the worker is structured. It asks one question: did you control the work? If yes — for WC purposes, for labor law purposes, for audit purposes — they're your employee. That's not a penalty. That's the rule. The contractors who document their subs properly don't get audit surprises. The ones who collect COIs after the fact — or not at all — find out what it costs at year end. DM AUDIT for the WC Audit Readiness Guide. DM REVIEW if you want us to look at your sub documentation setup. Both free. 🔨 #CaliforniaContractor #WorkersComp #1099 #WCAudit #ContractorInsurance #CaliforniaWorkersComp #ConstructionBusiness

Most contractors pay 1099 to save money. Here's the math nobody runs. You avoid payroll taxes and WC premium on that worker. But if he fails California's ABC test — the audit back-bills every dollar of WC you avoided. Plus penalties. The savings evaporate. The exposure doesn't. Run the full math before you decide. DM REVIEW on Instagram. @scottahenricks #WorkersComp #1099 #CaliforniaContractor #ABCTes

1099 subs are not the problem. Treating employees like subs because it's easier — that's the problem. What actually protects you: · Their own WC policy — valid, covering the dates they worked · Active CSLB license for the work · COI on file before work starts One unverified sub: real exposure. One properly documented sub: zero exposure. DM REVIEW on Instagram. @scottahenricks #WorkersComp #Subcontractor #1099 #CaliforniaContractor

Labor tight. Behind schedule. Called a 1099 guy. No WC. No paperwork. Job gets done. WC auditor finds him at year end. California ABC test: you controlled the work. He's your employee. Those payments: uninsured payroll. Bill: back-billed premium. Lump sum. The sub who saved your schedule just cost you more than you paid him. DM REVIEW on Instagram. @scottahenricks #WorkersComp #1099 #WCAudit #CaliforniaContractor

California doesn't care what's on the check. 1099. LLC. Signed IC agreement. None of it matters if you controlled the work. ABC test. Three conditions. Most 1099 arrangements on job sites fail B. Framing contractor pays a framer 1099? That's not outside your usual course of business. At audit: employee payroll. Back-billed WC premium. Lump sum. DM REVIEW on Instagram. @scottahenricks #WorkersComp #1099 #CaliforniaContractor #ABCTest

"My payroll company handles everything." They handle payroll. Great at it. They don't handle your WC class codes. They don't check the WCIRB threshold against your hourly wages. They don't know if your overtime is excluded from WC payroll. Your premium lives in the gap between payroll and insurance. Nobody fills that gap automatically. Follow for more of what the system doesn't explain. #WorkersComp #WCAudit #CaliforniaContractor

Five days on the WC audit this week. The one thing to take away: the audit doesn't create problems. It surfaces ones that were already there. DM AUDIT on Instagram for the readiness guide. @scottahenricks #WCAudit #CaliforniaContractor

One uninsured sub. Five-figure audit adjustment. No valid COI covering the dates they worked? Their payroll gets charged to YOUR policy. At YOUR rates. Unlicensed sub doing licensed work? Your employee at audit. CA Labor Code §2750.5. Doesn't matter what the check says. DM AUDIT on Instagram. @scottahenricks #WorkersComp #WCAudit #CaliforniaContractor #Subcontractor

You're paying workers comp on overtime you don't have to. The "half" in time-and-a-half is excluded from WC payroll. But only if you record it separately. Lump regular and OT into a weekly gross and you pay comp on all of it. Easy fix. Most contractors never ask their payroll system to do it. DM AUDIT on Instagram. @scottahenricks #WorkersComp #WCAudit #CaliforniaContractor

California just made it easier for condo owners to replace their windows. The catch lands on the installer. SB 908 was signed Sept. 29 and takes effect Jan. 1, 2027. HOAs can no longer block energy-code-compliant window replacements. If the windows sit in a common-area structure, the HOA has to approve once the owner agrees in writing to hire a licensed contractor, pull permits, and cover the cost. Here's the part that's about you, not the homeowner: the HOA can require the installer to indemnify and reimburse the association for loss or damage caused by the installation. That's a contract term. Read it before you sign, and know exactly what you're agreeing to. More HOA window work is coming. Go in with your eyes open. #CaliforniaContractors #WindowInstallation #Glazing #HOA #ContractorBusiness

One undocumented hour can move a lot of premium. Employee works across trades. No time records by task. Auditor assigns their ENTIRE paycheck to the highest-rated code that touched any of their work. One hour on a roofing task. Whole paycheck at roofing rates. That's not a penalty. That's the rule. DM AUDIT on Instagram. @scottahenricks #WorkersComp #WCAudit #CaliforniaContractor

The WC audit is not a formality. It's a financial trial where you're guilty until proven innocent by your timecards. Same crew. Same payroll. Very different premium. Depending on what your records can prove. DM AUDIT on Instagram for the Readiness Guide. @scottahenricks #WorkersComp #CaliforniaContractor #WCAudit

California comp, 2025: insurers project $1.27 in losses and expenses for every $1 of premium. Second year over 120%. Average charged rate: lowest in 50+ years. Those two numbers don't stay apart forever. Budget like the gap closes at your renewal. #workerscomp

California contractors, 3 changes in 2026: - Unlicensed-work fines start at $1,500 (July 1) - Your email on the cancel notice (Jan 1) - Comp benchmark +6.6% (Sept 1) The first two are paperwork. Paperwork is the part you control. #CAcontractors

Cumulative trauma claim rate, 2025: LA: 22.9% Inland Empire/OC: 19.8% (up 10 points) Run crews in SoCal? CT isn't the rare claim anymore. It's the one to plan for. #CAcontractors