[June 15, 2013] Ginger Blazier Advocates for the Research Fairness Act: Meets With Congressional Staff About Importance of Respondent Incentives In Survey, Opinion... Tweet (Targeted News Service Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Ginger Blazier Advocates for the Research Fairness Act: Meets With Congressional Staff About Importance of Respondent Incentives In Survey, Opinion and Marketing Research GLASTONBURY, Conn., June 14 -- The Marketing Research Association issued the following news: Ginger Blazier (Directions in Research) (http://www.bluebook.org/listing.cfm?Directions%20In%20Research,%20Inc.&cid=1438&locid=1) visited with staff for her Representative, Susan Davis (D-CA-53), on June 14, 2013. Although she did not get to meet with Rep. Davis herself, Ginger looks forward to talking with her back in San Diego soon. In Washington, DC for business, Ginger generously volunteered to take the meeting to assist a Marketing Research Association (MRA) advocacy campaign for the Research Fairness Act, which would clarify in federal labor law that research respondents receiving any amount of incentive are not employees of research companies. The continuing risk of regulators misclassifying respondents as employees, instead of as independent contractors, motivated MRA and the Mystery Shopping Providers Association (MSPA) to introduce the Research Fairness Act in 2012 (H.R. 5915 in the 112th Congress). (http://www.marketingresearch.org/hr-5915-the-research-fairness-act-of-2012) A determination by the U.S. Department of Labor that respondents are employees could require research companies offering incentives of any value to pay respondents overtime wages as well as the federal minimum wage, subject them to restrictions on youth participation, and add extensive paperwork burdens. After her meeting, Ginger then chipped in to explain to staff for Rep. Jamie Herrera Beutler (R-WA-03) the value of Census and American Community Survey (ACS) data in ensuring statistically valid research samples.( http://www.marketingresearch.org/the-census-bureau%E2%80%99s-american-community-survey-acs) Have you talked to your Senators or Member of Congress to advocate for the research profession yet? You don't have to come to DC. Get in touch with Howard Fienberg, MRA's director of government affairs, to get started. TNS24 HARIcha-130615-30FurigayJane-4390212 30FurigayJane (c) 2013 Targeted News Service [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]