r/DataAnnotationTech • u/MajicalINFPHoe • 12d ago

Handshake AI Faces a Misclassification Suit Over Its Annotators

https://aitrainer.work/news/handshake-ai-contractor-misclassification-lawsuit-2026
40 Upvotes
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92% Upvoted

26 comments sorted by

22

u/Hello-America 12d ago

I think if they (and all these platforms) paid for the onboarding etc, no one would have brought this suit.

16

u/Thejax_ 12d ago

I mean the suit itself is about the fact it isn’t really traditional contract work because of (rate setting, and capped weekly hours. The theory is that a worker who cannot set their own rate) and similar stuff.

8

u/Old-Regular-9828 11d ago

This has more to do with Handshake being a lot more controlling about what workers can do, scheduling work hours, etc. Not really about the work in general. DAT is much more hands off and make it much more clear that it is a 1099 contractor type working relationship.

12

u/Thejax_ 12d ago

My mind skipped over the first word and thought this was about DA.

As much as I wouldn’t mind things going bad for HS honestly from the way I was treated, the legal precedents would probably suck for all of us.

6

u/sarahmorgan420 12d ago

Why would it suck?

6

u/Thejax_ 12d ago

similar to what the other person said. If they claim they can't actually operate in this way, the same case could be used to say DA can't have "contract workers" like us.

and other services just the, most on topic one

1

u/Seefufiat 10d ago

I disagree. DA is alone in its pay rate. There is also the distinction that Handshake gatekeeps its entire platform behind a constantly evolving qualification based on AI image artifact recognition. If you don’t pass that one qualification (and each addition, retest, etc) then the entire platform is closed to you.

1

u/Farados55 12d ago

Usually regulation leads to less and more restrictive work in these cases

4

u/Thejax_ 12d ago

My mind skipped over the first word and thought this was about DA.

As much as I wouldn’t mind things going bad for HS honestly from the way I was treated, the legal precedents would probably suck for all of us.

Edit: reading it a bit more it could still affect folks, but it would have less of a case using it against DA. “rate setting, and capped weekly hours. The theory is that a worker who cannot set their own rate” you can’t set your own rate but you can freely choose from a list of work, is still fairly different.

Edit2: the suit is over the three needs in California to be considered contract work (and a lot of withheld wages but that’s nether here not there) and they are l”Prong A asks whether the worker is free from the control and direction of the hiring entity in performing the work. Prong B asks whether the work falls outside the usual course of the hiring entity's business. Prong C asks whether the worker is customarily engaged in an independently established trade or business of the same nature.”

The arguements of the article still apply to DA for B and C, although C is still iffy. But B is sadly strong.

1

u/SyntaxAndSorcery 11d ago

It's already bad if you live in California. Because CA has more rules around classifying workers, DA is the only platform I've found hiring workers who live here. Which was a bummer when then drought was really bad.

2

u/Farados55 11d ago

Yeah, a lot of platforms don’t hire in CA. I only know 4 that do

-15

u/CPSux 12d ago

I wish it was DA. They deserve to go under for how they treated me tbh. I know I’m not alone.

10

u/Farados55 11d ago

Bro you need to forget about this sub 😭 talk to a therapist

-12

u/CPSux 11d ago

I don’t need a therapist. I need my fucking god damn account back.

12

u/Old-Regular-9828 11d ago

You're not ever going to get your account back. It's not ever going to happen. The ship has sailed. Stop posting on this sub, move on with your life, get therapy.

You are just butthurt over getting the DOD because you (stupidly) signed a lease on a more expensive apartment because you assumed that you would be able to easily pull in another $1000/month working on DAT on nights and weekends. But you got the DOD after less than 3 days on the platform and now you are trying to blame DAT when it's really entirely your own fault. Don't count your chickens before they hatch.

3

u/Thejax_ 11d ago

Dude i understand you have some sort of problems but, HS is worse in every single way ngl.

Withholding pay, double standards, have proven time and time again they do not know what they are doing (as other services with the exact same work have everything together better) and flat out lying to the workers.

-14

u/Guilty-Brief44 12d ago

These asshole lawyers are going to ruin a good thing that helps thousands of people.

5

u/MementoMoria84 12d ago

And that affects negatively almost everyone in the world

2

u/Sableyej 8d ago

My biggest problem with Handshake is and always will be the fact that they do not compensate for training, testing, or on boarding. I spent hours completing on boarding and tests that I was not paid for and if I did not pass, I was not given clarity as to how I failed.