Posts tagged California Supreme Court
Commentary: California’s Unions Lost Their Long Battle Against Uber and Lyft
August 13, 2024 // The state Supreme Court unanimously ruled that ridesharing drivers can be exempted from California's crackdown on independent contracting.
Commentary: Kamala Harris Is Bad News for Gig Workers
August 8, 2024 // Though framed as an overdue deliverance for besieged workers, AB 5 was a gift to labor bosses who dreamed of organizing California gig workers, especially ride-share drivers, and who lusted after the potential dues they could rake in. It was also one of the most-detested laws passed in California in memory. There was no grassroots movement behind AB 5, no uprising among freelancers. It was a top-down scheme fueled by union agitation and then, like so many other lousy public policies hatched in California, unleashed across the country. AB 5’s impact was immediate — and ugly. Workers’ opportunities were narrowed. Many lost their incomes. Businesses faced higher labor costs, and entrepreneurs felt the chill of the dead hand of activist policy-making. The promise of the gig economy, expected to expand globally by roughly 123 percent over the next five years, turned bleak in California. With their businesses in the balance, Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash generously funded a ballot initiative, Proposition 22, that would classify “drivers for app-based transportation (rideshare) and delivery companies as ‘independent contractors,’ not ‘employees.’” Voters approved it overwhelmingly. App-based drivers favored Prop. 22 — four out of five said they were “happy” that it passed, 76 percent said it “benefits me personally,” and 75 percent recommended that lawmakers pass “similar laws in other states so drivers across the country can benefit.”
COMMENTARY: No Means No
July 29, 2024 // Don’t let the language of protection and freedom fool you. When someone refuses to take no for an answer, that’s not protection. It’s an attack on our freedom to choose self-employment. It’s an attempt to change the laws and regulations that protect us from them. What we are experiencing has a name. This is what zealotry looks like. It’s the behavior of fanatics who are uncompromising in the pursuit of what they want, no matter how detached from reality their beliefs are, and no matter how many people they hurt in the process.
California Supreme Court upholds AB5 exemption for gig workers
July 29, 2024 // Case on independent contractor law involved workers’ comp and ballot initiative Prop 22 that granted carve-out
Op-ed: I’m an Instacart driver: California Supreme Court must protect my job
April 18, 2024 // Hundreds of thousands of drivers like me are counting on the California Supreme Court to respect the will of the millions of Californians who voted for Prop 22 and continue to allow us to earn on our own terms. I hope that the court does the right thing and upholds Prop 22.
What the Biden Administration Could Learn From California’s Attempt To Ban Independent Contracting
April 8, 2024 // In other words, the president promised to replicate AB 5 nationally but has failed. I can only surmise that the Los Angeles Times doesn't pay much attention to California news, either. As noted above, AB 5 isn't the victim of Congress or industry—but of massive, angry blowback from California freelancers, many of them Democrats—in multiple professions who didn't appreciate losing their jobs. The story focused on San Francisco's settlement with a company that connects workers with hospitality industry jobs, so AB 5 is still wreaking havoc. The most aggravating part of the Times article cites a study from the pro-union Economic Policy Institute, which finds "blue-collar workers classified as contractors are losing out on as much as $16,700 a year compared with what they would have made as regular employees." Perhaps it should show how much money these workers are losing when companies axe their jobs because of the AB 5-style mandates. When it comes to economics, union think tanks, reporters, and the Biden administration are as clever as those proverbial worms.
New Research Quantifies Harms To Independent Contractors Of California’s AB5
January 23, 2024 // Despite AB5 proponents’ claims that the law would increase full-time employment and offer benefits and protections, the researchers found “robust evidence that AB5 is significantly associated with a decline in self-employment and a decline in overall employment.” · AB5 reduced the level of self-employment by 6.7 percentage points to 28%. · AB5 reduced the level of overall employment by 7.3 percentage points to 14%. · The researchers did not find significant evidence that AB5 increased W-2 employment.
Opinion Scherer: Government scrutiny of ‘gig workers’ Is misplaced
August 23, 2023 // The Labor Department published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the subject last year, but a final rule isn’t expected until October. Legal experts rightly criticized the proposed rule as an “ABC test in sheep’s clothing.” By this, they mean the rule seeks to mimic a 2018 California Supreme Court test known as the ABC Test, which made it more difficult for companies to hire workers as independent contractors. While it is impossible to know what Labor’s final rule will look like, final rules don’t typically differ significantly from proposed rules, making the prospect of an impartial final rule unlikely. This is terrible news for millions of American independent contractors who overwhelmingly like and support their working arrangements. For instance, a 2020 Morning Consult survey of independent contractors found that 71 percent believed “the freedom of being an independent contractor outweighs the benefits of being an employee.” A more recent 2022 study by MBO Partners found that 76 percent of independent contractors were “very satisfied with independent workers.” In addition, 84 percent said they were “happier” working independently, with 80 percent reporting that independent contracting was better for their health. These views are consistent with Bureau of Labor Statistics data showing that “79 percent of independent contractors preferred their arrangement over a traditional job.”
California: Uber, Lyft Can Treat Drivers as Contractors, Court Rules (1)
March 15, 2023 // “We agree that Proposition 22 does not intrude on the Legislature’s workers’ compensation authority or violate the single-subject rule, but we conclude that the initiative’s definition of what constitutes an amendment violates separation of powers principles,” the three-judge panel held. The court found the initiative violates the separation of powers principles by limiting lawmakers’ ability to enact amendments such as allowing gig workers to unionize. It severed that portion of the initiative and will “allow the rest of Proposition 22 to remain in effect, as the voters indicated they wished,” in a split victory for gig companies. The Protect App-Based Drivers and Services coalition that backed the initiative called the ruling “a historic victory for the nearly 1.4 million drivers who rely on the independence and flexibility of app-based work to earn income, and for the integrity of California’s initiative system.”