Steve Archambault, a Democratic candidate for attorney general, is calling for a crackdown on employee misclassification, saying that the "widespread" practice of paying regular workers as independent contractors is hurting the state financially, and harming workers, too.

"Employee misclassification is costing our state millions of dollars in tax revenues, leaving workers without basic protections, and putting employers who comply with the law at a competitive disadvantage," he said in a news release. "It is time to address this problem head on."

Pointing to the results of a recent study, Archambault estimated that paying people as independent contractors who should be classified as employees is costing Rhode Island as much as $50 million annually in unpaid income tax. Studies indicate that independent contractors do not report about 30 percent of their income, he said.

"Companies pay people as independent contractors, in part, to avoid paying unemployment insurance, workers' compensation and temporary disability insurance," Archambault said. "This leaves too many workers without a basic safety net and that is even more problematic in these difficult economic times."