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Tag:independent contractor

Will California Legislate Fairness for Gig Workers?

Sep 9, 2019 Benjamin Sachs and Sharon Block

The battle for the gig economy’s future is underway in California. The fight is over a proposed bill – AB5 – that would classify many gig workers, including Uber and Lyft drivers, as employees for purposes of California employment law. Should AB5 be enacted, gig workers would win important protections like minimum wage, overtime pay, […]

September 2, 2019
News & Commentary

Rachel Sandalow-Ash

Happy Labor Day! Rebecca Burns writes in Truthout about why workers should celebrate this Labor Day. Burns points to the continued success of teachers strikes; successful private-sector strikes in a diverse range of industries; increased labor support for a Green New Deal; and potential gains through the 2020 elections as some of the reasons to […]

August 4, 2019
News & Commentary

Deanna Krokos

On Saturday, several Democratic presidential candidates headed to Las Vegas for a forum hosted by the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees. The candidates laid out their plans for the economy and labor law reform in front of an audience of AFSCME members. The forum brought a focus to labor issues that were […]

Law and Politics in Employee Classification

Apr 30, 2019 Benjamin Sachs

As has been widely reported, the U.S. Department of Labor issued an “opinion letter” yesterday concluding that an unnamed “virtual marketplace company” does not employ the workers who make the company viable. Instead, the letter finds that these workers are independent contractors. The letter is flawed in multiple ways. As Sharon will explain, deciding a […]

April 12, 2019
News & Commentary

Bibeka Shrestha

Uber acknowledged Thursday in a filing for its initial public offering that classifying its drivers as employees, rather than independent contractors, would require a fundamental shift in the ride-hailing app’s business model. Uber currently classifies its drivers as independent contractors, which excuses the company from providing benefits, overtime pay, and a slew of worker protections reserved […]

March 28, 2019
News & Commentary

Jared Odessky

This week the National Employment Law Project released a report detailing how gig companies like Uber and Handy have led a state-by-state lobbying effort with corporate partners to strip gig workers of the legal protections afforded to employees. The report explains that in 2018 alone, the companies’ coordinated campaign resulted in the introduction of bills […]

March 22, 2019
News & Commentary

Alisha Jarwala

President Trump erroneously blamed the United Auto Workers union for the closure of the Lordstown GM factory in Ohio, stating in a speech that “[t]hey could’ve kept that gorgeous plant . . . Lower your dues. Lower your dues.” The plant’s closure—which was a decision made by GM, not the union—eliminated about 1,700 jobs in […]

March 5, 2019
News & Commentary

Bibeka Shrestha

A federal judge in Washington, D.C. ruled Monday that the Trump administration illegally prevented the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission from collecting more robust pay data from employers. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan found that the Office of Management and Budget’s decision to stay an Obama-era regulation providing for the collection of such pay data was […]

January 27, 2019
News & Commentary

Jenny Braun

The government shutdown ended Friday afternoon after 35 days. Many political players and commentators are attributing Trump’s “caving” on the border wall to Nancy Pelosi’s prowess at controlling the struggle between the parties, or to rising public resentment and fear of the shutdown’s long-term economic and social costs. But it is worth highlighting that hours […]

December 20, 2018
News & Commentary

Jared Odessky

As the NLRB continues its comment period for a proposed rule to codify a more restrictive standard for joint employer status, NLRB General Counsel Peter Robb has voiced his view that the rule does not go far enough in insulating lead employers from labor law liability. In comments made yesterday, Robb said that a joint […]

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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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Will California Legislate Fairness for Gig Workers?

September 2, 2019

August 4, 2019

Law and Politics in Employee Classification

April 12, 2019

March 28, 2019

March 22, 2019

March 5, 2019

January 27, 2019

December 20, 2018