Amazon: But ackshually they technically aren't Amazon employees

A lawyer almost certainly told execs that this was an illegal attempt to misclassify employees. I think we're getting to a place where if people do things even though a lawyer tells them it's illegal, they are personally liable (jointly with the org itself) for the decision even in the context of a limited liability organization. And if the lawyer is incompetent enough to tell them that it's legal, they need to be disbarred and potentially liable for the damages.