independent contractors vs. employees News

Grubhub Drivers Are Not Exempt From Arbitration, Massachusetts High Court Rules

On-demand delivery drivers for Grubhub are subject to the company’s mandatory arbitration clauses in their contracts, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has ruled in overturning a lower court that found the drivers were entitled to an exemption under federal law. …

Maryland Apple Store Workers Vote to Unionize. Now What?

The historic vote by employees of a Maryland Apple store to unionize — a first for the technology giant — is a significant step in a lengthy process that labor experts say is heavily stacked against workers in favor of …

Massachusetts Sues Uber, Lyft to Classify Drivers as Employees

Massachusetts on Tuesday followed California in suing Uber Technologies Inc and Lyft Inc. over allegedly misclassifying their drivers as independent contractors instead of employees entitled to extensive benefits. The complaint filed in Suffolk Superior Court claims Uber and Lyft violate …

Uber Wins Ruling That Drivers Are Not Employees in Brazil, Its 2d Biggest Market

A Brazilian higher court for labor ruled on Wednesday that there was no employment relationship between Uber and its drivers, siding with the ride-hailing company against a Sao Paulo driver. The federal judge in Brasilia ruled against recognizing an employer-employee …

Union Not Siding with Rideshare Operators on California Labor Law

Uber and Lyft suffered a setback in their months-long fight against rules that could force them to reclassify California drivers as employees. The ridesharing companies, along with other businesses that depend on gig-economy work, have been talking with unions about …

Uber, Lyft Appeal for Deal on Driver Status as Independent Contractors

Faced with legislation in California that endangers their business model, Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. are urging a compromise that would keep their drivers from being considered employees. “We can make independent work better if we update century-old employment …

National Labor Board Memo Says Uber Drivers Are Contractors, Not Employees

Drivers for ride-hailing company Uber Technologies Inc. are independent contractors and not employees, the general counsel of a U.S. labor agency has concluded, in an advisory memo that is likely to carry significant weight in a pending case against the …

Uber Paying $20M to Settle Long-Running Legal Battle With Drivers

Uber Technologies Inc. has agreed to pay $20 million to settle a lawsuit brought by drivers nearly six years ago, according to court filings, resolving one of its many legal battles with drivers ahead of a hotly anticipated initial public …

Gig Firms Want California to Override Court Ruling

Leading gig economy companies including Uber and Lyft are quietly lobbying California’s top Democrats to override or undermine a court ruling that could make many of their contract workers into employees. In April, the California Supreme Court issued a far-reaching …

U.S. Judge Rules ‘Gig Economy’ Driver Is Independent Contractor

A U.S. judge in San Francisco on Thursday said a former Grubhub Inc. delivery driver was an independent contractor and not the company’s employee, in the first case of its kind against a “gig economy” company that went to trial. …