Love Is Blind contestant sues over contractor misclassification in CA

A former contestant on Netflix's dating series Love Is Blind filed a proposed class action Monday in California Superior Court, alleging the show's producers misclassified contestants as independent contractors and subjected them to unpaid wages and unsafe, coercive working conditions. The suit names Netflix, production companies Kinetic Content and Delirium TV, and 150 unnamed defendants, and seeks unspecified damages on behalf of contestants and applicants who worked on the show and similar productions in California.

The complaint, brought by season seven contestant Stephen Richardson, says he and other cast members should have been treated as employees under California law and therefore entitled to minimum wage, overtime and other protections. The filing alleges the defendants exercised substantial control over contestants' daily lives, including their schedules, communications, eating and sleeping, and that the degree of control supports employee classification rather than independent contractor status.

Richardson contends the production imposed strict restrictions while cast members were housed at a hotel during filming. The complaint alleges production staff directed hotel...