The operator agreement — what it has to cover
The pieces the operator agreement must include. This is an outline, not the actual legal
text — have a lawyer draft and review the real thing, especially the parts that touch the
contractor-vs-employee question (LAUNCH-NOTES #14).
It’s e-signed at onboarding (09), and the date is saved on the operator’s record.
What it covers
- Who’s who. Names the platform and the operator as an independent contractor, not an
employee. (The section the lawyer most has to get right — see the caution below.)
- What they do. Managed home-network service to their own customers; the operator decides
how the work gets done (that independence is the point).
- The money. The operator pays the platform a membership due and bills their customers
directly; the platform does not take a cut of every job. Matches
MARKETING’s model.
- Use of the brand and tools. They get to use the A777ance name (00), the statement tool,
and the directory — as long as they stay in good standing and keep their vetting current.
- Standards. Vetting stays current (09), the bond/insurance stays active, and they follow
the data-handling and honesty rules (no made-up numbers; statements show categories, never the
actual sites someone visited).
- Data & privacy. How they handle customers’ personal info and network data;
confidentiality; what to do if something leaks.
- Taxes. The W-9 requirement; that they get a 1099-NEC; that they’re responsible for their
own taxes.
- Leaving. At-will; and what happens to their book of homes — and those homes’ data files in
localDNS — if they leave, so customers aren’t left stranded.
- What belongs to whom. The stack, the tools, and the brand stay the platform’s; the
customer relationships follow the guild model.
- Liability.
CHANGE_ME, per the lawyer.
The classification caution (read it every time)
The agreement can say “independent contractor” all it wants — but how everyone actually
behaves is what decides it. If the platform dictates routes, schedules, prices, and methods, a
regulator can reclassify the operator as an employee no matter what the paper says. Keep
operators genuinely independent (they own the how), and check the structure with a lawyer
before scaling. Documenting this honestly is the whole point — don’t paper over it.