Posts tagged rideshare drivers
Your Uber Driver May Soon Be Unionized. At What Cost?
June 15, 2026 // In fact, this result has already been seen in locales that have pushed aggressive minimum wage laws for gig workers—another one-size-fits-all progressive labor policy that left-leaning cities have begun importing to gig work in recent years. For instance, the waitlist to become an UberEats driver in New York City grew to 27,000 after the Big Apple passed a minimum wage ordinance for app-based food delivery in 2023; the minimum wage rules forced Uber to limit drivers in an effort to control spiking labor costs. Unfortunately, draconian sector-wide labor rules will also raise labor costs for these platforms, with the costs inevitably being passed along to riders in the form of more expensive Uber rides. (Such a passed-along price increase has also already been seen with the minimum wage mandates for food delivery.) The gig worker unionization drive that is spreading acr
Mass. rideshare drivers win first union certification
May 25, 2026 // Massachusetts rideshare drivers have secured the first union certification from the Commonwealth’s Department of Labor after a years-long effort. The Massachusetts Department of Labor Relations on Friday, marking the largest private sector bargaining victory since the 1940s and first union of gig workers in the country.
IL Labor Relations Board director: Rideshare unionization bill could double budget
March 12, 2026 // SEIU Local 1 President Genie Kastrup told the Illinois Senate Labor Committee on Tuesday that SB 2906 would require rideshare companies to negotiate a collective bargaining agreement if organizers get support from 30% of active drivers. Illinois Labor Relations Board Executive Director Kimberly Stevens told the committee that the bill’s 20-cent per ride administrative fee on riders would be an issue.
Maine Considers Setting Minimum Rate of Pay for Rideshare Drivers on Platforms Like Uber and Lyft
January 21, 2026 // At the close of their testimony, the group suggests that lawmakers consider implementing a “portable benefits” program wherein drivers can accrue benefits across multiple platforms without “sacrificing their independent contractor status.” “We share the goal of ensuring that rideshare drivers can earn a fair living,” Chamber of Progress said. “But the evidence is clear: in city after city, minimum pay mandates have backfired by raising prices for riders, compressing earnings for experienced drivers, and degrading service for everyone.”
California Clears Path for Gig Unions
November 23, 2025 // It's also clear that the political left will not be content to merely stop at unionization. Progressives like former California assemblymember (and sponsor of A.B. 5) Lorena Gonzalez (D–San Diego) have described unionization as "a step forward" but not "the limit of what's possible." Teamster President Sean O'Brien—whose GOP-convention speech highlighted Republicans' shift toward unions—has dismissed a similar Massachusetts unionization effort for gig workers, saying it supports "greedy corporations that want to deny full employment rights to workers."
Commentary: AB 1340 Is a Death-Knell to Rideshare Independence for California Drivers
October 9, 2025 // Long odds predict that, just as with the fallout from AB5, rideshare drivers will ultimately not like the end result. Just as California’s AB5 has infected the nation, with AB5-like restrictive measures being considered in Minnesota and New Jersey, this new California law is a bellwether to the erosion of the rideshare model in other states.
One Big Beautiful Law on American Radio Journal
July 7, 2025 // This week on American Radio Journal: Lowman Henry talks with Vincent Vernuccio from the Institute for the American Worker about the proposed Employee Rights Act of 2025;
Editorial: Unionizing Uber and Lyft drivers may speed up their robotic replacement
July 2, 2025 // Here’s the issue for drivers. Labor talks are playing out as Uber and its competitors are investing heavily in driverless vehicles, just like Tesla. Uber isn’t hiding that future. Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi even told The Wall Street Journal this year he expects AVs to gradually overtake human drivers.
Wisconsin gig workers could become independent contractors under bill headed to governor’s desk
June 19, 2025 // Drivers for transit apps like Uber or DoorDash would be given more flexibility, but they'd also be exempt from worker's compensation or minimum wage requirements
Déjà Vu All Over Again
April 14, 2025 // Reclassification attempts began with a media narrative, then blue-state legislation. The same thing is happening now with sectoral organizing.