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Category:Gig Economy

Is Uber Wagging the Dog With Its Moonlighting Drivers?

Feb 1, 2016 Noah Zatz

There is a math problem with Uber’s most powerful argument for classifying its drivers as independent contractors, not employees. That argument emphasizes how weakly attached to Uber most drivers are, as evidenced by how many drivers work very few hours per week. Uber CEO Travis Kalanick recently defended the company’s labor practices by citing company […]

Liss-Riordan Statement on Lyft Settlement

Jan 29, 2016 Benjamin Sachs

As we’ve covered, Lyft has agreed to settle the class-action lawsuit brought by Shannon Liss-Riordan and Matthew Carlson on behalf of California drivers. The attorneys’ statement regarding the settlement is worth reading – both because it provides important details about the settlement agreement, and because it offers insight into the thinking behind the agreement. The complete statement, provided to OnLabor […]

Gig News — January 27, 2016

Jan 27, 2016 Jon Weinberg

This post is part of an ongoing series on labor and the gig economy. Uber may soon increase the control it has over its drivers. The Guardian reports that, in a pilot program, Uber is using smartphone sensors to track whether drivers accelerate and break too quickly. The company also said it is considering other […]

Beyond Misclassification: Gig Economy Discrimination Outside Employment Law

Jan 19, 2016 Noah Zatz

Amidst all the hubbub about whether Uber drivers et al. are to be classified legally as “employees,” some important things are easy to miss. First, these employee status issues are longstanding and widespread beyond the gig economy. Misclassification plagues workers who provide essential services but may be easier to ignore when commentators and policymakers do […]

Gig News Explainer: Uber's Driver Arbitration Clauses & the O'Connor v. Uber Class Action

Jan 4, 2016 Jon Weinberg

U.S. District Court Judge Edward Chen recently issued a final class action certification in O’Connor v. Uber. Judge Chen expanded the class to include drivers bound by 2014 and 2015 arbitration clauses, finding that those clauses were unenforceable on public policy grounds. Since the issuance of the order, Uber has sought to delay the trial and […]

Gig News: Seattle Passes Historic Bill Giving Uber & Lyft Drivers Right to Unionize

Dec 15, 2015 Jon Weinberg

As Ryan highlighted in his post earlier this morning, the Seattle City Council unanimously passed historic legislation yesterday that gives independent contractor drivers the right to collectively bargain, including those for gig economy “transportation network companies” Uber and Lyft. The bill can be read in its entirety here. Buzzfeed published a comprehensive summary on the legislation, […]

NLRB Finds Tucson Taxi Drivers Employees, and Uber Drivers Could Be Next

Dec 14, 2015 Jon Weinberg

As employment misclassification suits involving the gig economy continue to proliferate, a new decision by a National Labor Relations Board Regional Director might have significant implications for the definition of employee under the National Labor Relations Act. The finding, in AAA Transportation/Yellow Cab (Tucson Hacks Association), that taxi drivers were statutory employees, represents an extension […]

Gig News: Uber Successfully Pursuing State Legislation on Independent Contractor Status

Dec 11, 2015 Jon Weinberg

Today Reuters published an important story noting efforts by Uber to lobby for state legislation requiring that drivers for companies like Uber and Lyft be classified as independent contractors. They found that North Carolina, Arkansas, and Indiana have already passed laws mandating that drivers working for “transportation networking companies” (like Uber and Lyft) be classified as […]

Gig News: Uber Driver Class Action Significantly Expanded

Dec 11, 2015 Jon Weinberg

In a major ruling this week, U.S. District Court Judge Edward Chen significantly expanded the number of drivers who can join the major class action O’Connor v. Uber, set for a jury trial in June 2016. The ruling, a final class action certification, can be read in its entirety here. Notably, Judge Chen expanded the […]

Do We Need an "Independent Worker" Category?

Dec 8, 2015 Benjamin Sachs

Seth Harris and Alan Krueger released a paper yesterday in which they argue for a new legal classification of worker, something between the “employee” and the “independent contractor” designations of existing law. They call their new category the “independent worker” and they propose a host of revisions to U.S. labor and employment law (and antitrust […]

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OnLabor

Law. Workers. Organizing.

OnLabor is a blog devoted to workers, unions, and their politics. We interpret our subject broadly to include the current crisis in the traditional union movement (why union decline is happening and what it means for our society); the new and contested forms of worker organization that are filling the labor union gap; how work ought to be structured and managed; how workers ought to be represented and compensated; and the appropriate role of government — all three branches — in each of these issues.

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Is Uber Wagging the Dog With Its Moonlighting Drivers?

Liss-Riordan Statement on Lyft Settlement

Gig News — January 27, 2016

Beyond Misclassification: Gig Economy Discrimination Outside Employment Law

Gig News Explainer: Uber's Driver Arbitration Clauses & the O'Connor v. Uber Class Action

Gig News: Seattle Passes Historic Bill Giving Uber & Lyft Drivers Right to Unionize

NLRB Finds Tucson Taxi Drivers Employees, and Uber Drivers Could Be Next

Gig News: Uber Successfully Pursuing State Legislation on Independent Contractor Status

Gig News: Uber Driver Class Action Significantly Expanded

Do We Need an "Independent Worker" Category?