Posts tagged Uber
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.”
4 reasons why labor unions love Tim Walz
August 8, 2024 // The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers noted that Walz, a former teacher, understands the struggles of working people. The AFL-CIO hailed the governor as a principled fighter and labor champion. The Service Employees International Union pointed to what it called "the Minnesota Miracle," a sweeping package of pro-worker laws passed by the state's Democratic legislature last year and signed into law by Walz.
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
Compass Coffee union election on hold over challenged ballots
July 18, 2024 // More than 100 workers from seven Compass Coffee shops voted Tuesday on whether to unionize, but after all the ballots were cast, nothing was resolved in this contentious battle between union organizers and the Washington-based company that has been accused of hiring dozens of new employees to dilute the vote. All 22 workers whose ballots went unchallenged voted in favor of a union, according to tallies from the National Labor Relations Board on Wednesday. But union organizers and Compass representatives challenged 101 ballots, which puts the issue in the NLRB’s hands.
Freelancers sue over new rules on independent contractors
July 8, 2024 // “It really coerces a lot of companies to try to put people, put workers in the employee box just so that they can be sure that they have their bases covered,” says Wen Fa, an attorney and vice president of legal affairs at the Beacon Center of Tennessee, a nonprofit think tank that advocates for individual rights and free market public policies. “Ultimately, what we’re fighting for is the right to freelance.” Fa is representing Margaret Littman and Jennifer Chesak — Nashville-based freelance writers and authors whose bylines collectively include The Washington Post, Men’s Health, National Geographic, and Condé Nast Traveler.
Commentary: The Big Fear? A Real Rematch
July 6, 2024 // Just a few hours after the court’s ruling dropped late last week, allowing both ballot measures to proceed, the Massachusetts attorney general made an announcement of her own. She agreed to a deal that will let Uber and Lyft drivers in Massachusetts remain independent contractors, with a minimum hourly wage of $32.50 and some benefits. Interestingly, the attorney general’s announcement noted that the deal averts giving the people of Massachusetts a chance to vote on the matter:
Gavin Newsom Wants to Curb a Labor Law That Cost Businesses $10 Billion
June 12, 2024 // Newsom’s office has brought together the state’s powerful California Chamber of Commerce with the California Labor Federation to hash out a compromise over the Private Attorneys General Act, or PAGA, people familiar with the negotiations said. The law has cost big and small businesses $10 billion over the past ten years, according to one study, and is viewed by labor advocates as a model of worker protection.The negotiators are in a race against time: June 27 is the deadline to strike a measure from Californians’ November ballot that would give voters the opportunity to repeal the law. The Chamber of Commerce is negotiating on behalf of a broad alliance, which includes the billionaire owner of the Wonderful Company, Stewart Resnick, car dealership owners, Walmart and McDonald’s Corp., along with small businesses across the state. The business coalition committed more than $31 million to entities backing the ballot measure, including the signature-gathering effort and an advertising blitz.
Revised minimum wage law for delivery drivers moves forward in Seattle, set for full council vote
May 14, 2024 // The current law is “clearly not working,” Nelson said on Thursday. She said the new legislation is an “effort to reverse the bad outcomes caused by a flawed law and catalyzed by network companies imposing a new so-called regulatory fee, which caused a drop in customer orders, a drastic reduction in worker wages, and lost revenues for restaurants and other retail establishments.” Seattle’s citywide minimum wage for employees — delivery drivers are treated as independent contractors — is $19.97. Working Washington, a nonprofit that helped pass the original legislation in Seattle, released a report this week showing how the new ordinance would result in net pay of $13.17 per hour, due in part to expenses such as payroll taxes and mileage costs that drivers pay for on their own.