Six months after a judge rejected Uber’s claim that it wasn’t responsible for its drivers’ actions after they turned the ride-hailing service app off, the company has settled with two passengers who sued it for hiring drivers accused of sexually assaulted them. The court didn’t reveal the terms of the settlement. [More]
Independent Contractors
Judge Rejects $100 Million Settlement Proposal In Uber Drivers Class Action
By 8.19.16
The man who ended up as the named plaintiff in a lawsuit of Uber drivers in Califoria and Massachusetts is dissatisfied with the proposed settlement of $100 million to be shared among all class members, and it turns out that the judge in the case doesn’t approve of that offer, either. The judge in the case agrees with him, it turns out, and both sides have been sent back to negotiate a new settlement. [More]
Judge: Uber Drivers Aren’t Employees, But Passengers Can Still Sue In Sexual Assault Case
By 5.6.16
Two passengers in different states who were sexually assaulted by Uber drivers are suing the company, and the judge in this case just made an important ruling: drivers’ status as independent contractors rather than employees doesn’t mean that the company can’t be sued for sexual assaults that drivers commit against their passengers. [More]
Uber Drivers Are Independent Contractors, Will Receive Up To $100M In Settlement
By 4.22.16
For the better part of three years, Uber drivers have sparred with the ride-sharing company over the status of their employment: are they independent contractor or actual employees? Today, Uber has agreed to settle two lawsuits over the issue, paying up to $100 million to the drivers who will remain independent contractors. [More]
San Francisco Requiring Uber, Lyft Drivers To Get Business Licenses
By 4.15.16
Though you might think of Uber and Lyft drivers as employees of those ridesharing services, the companies maintain that drivers are independent contractors who simply use the Uber or Lyft platforms to connect with passengers. That now means that several thousand of these independent operators in San Francisco must each obtain a business license.
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Some New York City Uber Drivers Will Go On Strike At Noon
By 2.1.16
You might remember last week that we reported about Uber’s plans to cut fares by about 15% in New York City. Customers are surely delighted, and some drivers are happy to have less downtime, but other drivers are less thrilled, and around 1,000 drivers are expected to go on strike today at noon. [More]
Three On-Demand Food Delivery Services Hit With Lawsuits Over Worker Misclassification
By 9.24.15
GrubHub, DoorDash and Caviar can all deliver food to customers with a few taps and clicks on an app, and they all have something else in common — they’re each facing new lawsuits alleging that their delivery drivers are misclassified as independent contractors. [More]
Former Uber Driver In California Granted Unemployment Payments
By 9.10.15
While a decision by the California Employment Development Department only affects one employee and their claim for unemployment benefits, it’s yet another official declaration from a government agency that the people who drive for Uber have an employer-employee relationship with the company, which in theory should entitle them to benefits that employees receive: reimbursement of vehicle costs, having the employer’s portion of their income taxes paid, and receiving unemployment benefits when their employment with the company ends involuntarily, if appropriate. [More]
The Uber Misclassified Employee Lawsuit Is Now A California Class Action
By 9.2.15
While class action lawsuits can be an effective consumer remedy, they are not a quick one. Former drivers for ride-hailing service Uber first filed a class action on behalf of all California drivers in 2013, and it has just now been certified as a class action. The original lawsuit alleges that drivers for Uber are misclassified employees, who should have their vehicle expenses covered by their “employer,” Uber. [More]
Instacart Gives Shoppers Employee Status, Says It’s To Improve Customer Experience
By 6.22.15
App-based, on-demand services make it easy to order a variety of products and services, and many of the workers who bring you those services are full- or part-time contractors. Some companies, like on-demand ride providers Uber and Lyft, are actively fighting in court to not be forced to give their workers “employee” status. Another company, shopping service Instacart, is proactively making their grocery pickers in some states employees. [More]
California Labor Commission: Uber Driver Was An Employee
By 6.17.15
Now that app-based ride-hailing services make the barrier of entry to the taxi business as low as “yep, I own a car, I try not to hit things with it, and I am not a criminal,” traditional ideas about who is an “employee” may have to change. This week, a decision by the California Labor Commission declared a former driver for Uber, which could be very expensive for similar companies if the decision holds up on appeal and applies to the rest of their fleet. [More]
Even If You Spend Your Career Driving For FedEx, You Might Not Be An Employee
By 10.17.14
Each day thousands of delivery drivers get behind the wheel of FedEx Ground trucks and set out for a long day of work. While those workers must follow the company’s rules and regulations about delivery times and working hours, FedEx contends they aren’t actual employees, but independent contractors. That distinction is at the core of a series of class action lawsuits filed against the company in which former workers are seeking compensation for unpaid overtime and paycheck deductions. [More]
