Jon Weinberg is a student at Harvard Law School.
In a major ruling with widespread implications for gig economy workers in the United Kingdom, an employment tribunal in London found that Uber drivers are not self-employed independent contractors, but rather Uber workers. The Guardian reports that “the case could open up the technology firm to claims from all of its 40,000 drivers in the UK, and force other companies in the so-called gig economy to review the way that they are employing staff.” Drivers will now be entitled to the national living wage, as well as paid holidays and paid rest breaks. Uber is likely to appeal the ruling.
In the United States, Uber has again been sued by drivers in New York who accuse Uber of wage theft. Bloomberg BNA notes that the drivers originally filed a class action alleging violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act and New York Labor Law, but now four of the drivers “who haven’t opted out of arbitration agreements with Uber, will contend the National Labor Relations Act bars arbitration pacts containing class action waivers” as well as the same substantive FLSA and NY Labor Law violations. As a result, “the six drivers in the original lawsuit who opted out of arbitration can more quickly move for court consideration of their ‘wage theft’ claims.” The drivers contend that “Uber’s pay practices mean many drivers working more than eight hours a shift earn less than minimum wage and receive no overtime pay.”
Meanwhile, Uber is moving ahead with the formation of company-funded quasi-unions which will purport to represent drivers and yet promise not to strike. According to Josh Eidelson of Bloomberg Businessweek, the Uber-funded Independent Drivers Guild was launched in partnership with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) and claims to represent all 40,000+ Uber divers in New York City in arbitration hearings challenging driver deactivation, and also offers “such perks as discounted legal assistance and chances to air grievances at monthly meetings with Uber officials.” However, the IDG wasn’t voted for by drivers and has no collective bargaining agreement, and some argue it represents an effort by Uber to resist true unionization.
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September 15
Unemployment claims rise; a federal court hands victory to government employees union; and employers fire workers over social media posts.
September 14
Workers at Boeing reject the company’s third contract proposal; NLRB Acting General Counsel William Cohen plans to sue New York over the state’s trigger bill; Air Canada flight attendants reject a tentative contract.
September 12
Zohran Mamdani calls on FIFA to end dynamic pricing for the World Cup; the San Francisco Office of Labor Standards Enforcement opens a probe into Scale AI’s labor practices; and union members organize immigration defense trainings.
September 11
California rideshare deal advances; Boeing reaches tentative agreement with union; FTC scrutinizes healthcare noncompetes.
September 10
A federal judge denies a motion by the Trump Administration to dismiss a lawsuit led by the American Federation of Government Employees against President Trump for his mass layoffs of federal workers; the Supreme Court grants a stay on a federal district court order that originally barred ICE agents from questioning and detaining individuals based on their presence at a particular location, the type of work they do, their race or ethnicity, and their accent while speaking English or Spanish; and a hospital seeks to limit OSHA's ability to cite employers for failing to halt workplace violence without a specific regulation in place.
September 9
Ninth Circuit revives Trader Joe’s lawsuit against employee union; new bill aims to make striking workers eligible for benefits; university lecturer who praised Hitler gets another chance at First Amendment claims.