Are you an employee or a contractor? California carpenters, strippers and dog walkers face that question

When Kristyn Hansen first worked at Stews Barber Shop, she cut hair nine hours a day, three days a week. She earned no overtime pay, had no mandated breaks, and her Ladera Ranch bosses didn't cover Social Security taxes, unemployment or disability insurance.

That's because Hansen, 32, was classified as an independent contractor. "I loved it," she said. The schedule allowed her to take five classes at a local college. The pay - 60 percent of an $18 haircut - made for "a comfortable living" serving about 30 customers a day. Health insurance was covered by her husband's employer.

But in October, the shop switched its seven barbers to employee status. To offset the expense of payroll taxes, sick leave, vacation and other benefits for the barbers, pay dropped to $15 an hour, with just a 15 percent share of the haircut price.

Now Hansen works four nine-hour days, taking home about $300 less weekly than when she worked just three days. "For some people, there are advantages to being an employee," she said. "But not for me. I'm stressed for sure."

A California Supreme Court decision last April is upending large and small workplaces across California, making it harder to classify workers as independent contractors. A wide