gig economy News

Freelance Workforce Keeps Growing, Increasingly by Choice

Freelancing is growing. The freelance workforce grew from 53 million in 2014 to 55 million in 2016 and currently represents 35 percent of the U.S. workforce. This freelance workforce earned an estimated $1 trillion this past year, representing a significant …

Uber: Giving UK Drivers Workers’ Rights Would Cost Millions of Pounds

Uber said on Tuesday that paying National Insurance contributions for its British drivers would add tens of millions of pounds to the taxi app’s costs were they to be deemed employees. Uber currently classifies its around 50,000 drivers in Britain …

Toyota Makes Strategic Investment in Grab, SE Asia’s Leading Ride-Sharing Firm

Toyota Motor Corp. is pushing deeper into the ride-sharing business. The Japanese carmaker is making a strategic investment in Grab, Southeast Asia’s leading ride-hailing operator, and said it will work with the company to provide services in Southeast Asia. Toyota …

Uber Improves Work Conditions for UK Drivers Including Tipping via App

Taxi app Uber will improve conditions for its British drivers with changes including in-app tipping, after criticism from lawmakers and unions for not giving them more rights. Drivers for Uber, food courier Deliveroo and other apps tend to work for …

Is Colorado’s Pet Sitting Law Another Insurance Quagmire Waiting to Unfold?

If it barks like a dog… A new Colorado law that enables people to sit up to three pets without needing a license looks pretty much like just another piece of the growing gig economy. People can sell their services …

Uber Faces Biggest Challenge to European Plans in Region’s Top Court

Uber faces the biggest challenge yet to its European roll-out after the region’s top court was advised to rule that the U.S. ride-hailing firm is actually a transport service not an app. Although the opinion of the Court of Justice …

China Ride-Hailing Firm, Didi, to Go Global After Record Funding

Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing just raised more than $5.5 billion, giving Uber Technologies Inc. Chief Executive Officer Travis Kalanick one more thing to worry about. Didi’s record funding round is said to value the company at more than $50 …

UK Uber Drivers Can Now Buy Injury & Illness Insurance

Uber Technologies Inc. will begin offering U.K. drivers the ability to buy injury and illness insurance, a step to provide a safety net for the independent drivers it has long been criticized for treating poorly. The benefit is a first …

Uber Faces Hike in London License Fees, in Latest Blow for Ride-Hailing Firm

Taxi app Uber could face an increase in operator license fees in London under proposed changes by the city’s transport authority, the latest in a series of moves by regulators to rein in a firm that has disrupted the traditional …

Uber Sees EU Growth Despite Impending EU Court Ruling, Denmark Setback

Uber Technologies sees opportunities to expand in the Europe Union, despite withdrawing its ride-hailing service from Denmark and facing the possibility of an EU court ruling that could mean tougher rules for the firm, an Uber executive said. Danes hailed …