WHO OWNS COPYRIGHTED WORKS CREATED BY EMPLOYEES?
In the employment sector, employees always create or come up with creative works as part of their expected duties in the workplace. Employers sometimes assign employees specific work as the reason for their employment. An objective of an employer to the employee could be that of content creation, for example, a graphic designer employed to create advertisement brochures for an investment firm or even an appointed photographer whose primary duty in the company is to take photographs concerning the Company whereabouts.
The content maker is the original owner of the works, as stated in the Federal Copyright Act. The author is the natural person who created the work (Art. 6 CopA), in this matter, the employee as the subject. But the employees also always want to profit from this, especially if the job market opportunity for this employee was of this objective, creative content creation. And as a result, they would wish the employees attach the copyright of the works to the firm. Assigning the copyright to the firm means that the employee no longer owns the copyright solely, and this posses a limit of not using the work without obtaining permission from the employer or the employer not able to use the works without prior consent from the employee.
However, this is not for the case of works that are meant for hiring. If the creative work is done for hire within the understanding of the ownership act, then the commissioner of the actions or the employer is the author and will own the ownership act as if it were the original author. There exist two standards for which the work is classified under the works of hire; one circumstance is whereby the work is prepared by the employee within the scope of the employment. If the work is done by the employee under the common law in the employment, then the work is termed as work for hire, and the employer holds the mandate of the real owner of the copyright ( In Community for Creative Non-Violence v.Reid, 490 U.S. 730 1989). Another standard comes whereby there are specific contracts stated, commissioned works, or working on particular orders as agreed as under work on hire in the signed agreements between the employer and the contractor.
The work meant for hire agreement is valid if the contract is signed and signature appended before the work commences. If the work is begun before the signing of the deal, then disputes over the initial ownership of the copyright might start if you have appended signatures to “work made for hire” contract that does not necessarily dictate that the work is for hire, at first, the courts will determine whether the situation meets all the statutory measures or requirements. If not, the court has the mandate to disregard the “work made for hire” term and instead rule otherwise to confirm if the ownership is transferred to the contractor.
If the job contract provides providence that is not clear concerning work or does not give providence at all, then the objections are worked out by the purpose of the employment contract. The employment contract skillfully includes the assignment of the copyrights to the employer if the employees, according to the employment contract is to generate one or more works for the employer. In this matter, then the rights that are needed to achieve the purpose of the contract are assigned.

REFERENCES
Bryan M. Carson. Legally Speaking — Independent Contractors, Work For Hire Agreements, and The Way To Avoid A Sticky Mess. Against the Grain 16.6 (December 2005/January 2006).
Margoni & Perry (2012). “Ownership in Complex Authorship: A Comparative Study of Joint Works.” ssrn: 16. SSRN 1992610.

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