Sounds illegal to me, why not call your local IRS dept. and State tax board and run it by them.

 Ask the owner if you can talk to the other 'workers' in the salon and find out how it's working for them.

How long has this salon and owner been in business?

Talk to a tax accountant about this compensation idea.

Exactly (gd) but what comes with this type of pay is FREEDOM.  You can come and go as you choose-  you can wear what you want- no strings.  If the owner tries to treat you as an employee- simply tell the owner he/she can get nailed for treating you as an employee without paying payroll taxes and THAT is illegal.

Yes. It's legal. What you are is a subcontractor. It's prevalent in the real estate business as well. You will receive a 1099 from your employer if you choose to stay with this salon.

Go to www.irs.gov and click on the forms link. Scroll down to form 1040-Schedule-C and the instructions for this form... This will tell you what to use to reduce your gross 1099-misc income.

This will decrease the amount of self-employment taxes and income taxes you will have to pay.

"The truth is incontrovertible; malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is."
Winston Churchill

Mileage can be written off, keep track of the miles to and from the supply house, or bank runs.  You can write off training materials, classes and the cost of travel to and from.  Do you have a uniform dress code? If so your clothes can be deducted.  Anything you do that is work related, you may need to check with a tax advisor, or look it up on the net.  Good luck and Enjoy the great world of hair.