This Week in Rideshare: Cali vs Uber vs Cali…and Lyft.
California fights back, Uber hits a roadblock, and Lyft joins the fight. LegalRideshare breaks it down.
MONDAY 8/10/20
Out of the gate, Uber’s CEO Dara Khosrowshahi made headlines with his own op-ed, calling for “benefits funds” for gig workers. CNET reported:
In an op-ed published in The New York Times, Khosrowshahi proposed that lawmakers require gig economy companies to create “benefits funds” that would “give workers cash that they can use for the benefits they want, like health insurance or paid time off.”
Dara even hop onto The Rideshare Guy’s podcast to voice his opinion.
TUESDAY 8/11/20
On Tuesday, we covered California’s devastating blow to Uber & Lyft after the judge ordered both companies to classify drivers as employees. CNBC talked with California’s AG who agreed:
“What worker doesn’t want to have access to paid sick leave?” Becerra said. “What worker doesn’t want to have unemployment insurance at a time of Covid-19 crisis? What worker doesn’t want to know that they’ll get paid for overtime if they work 60 hours in a week or 12 hours in a day?”
WEDNESDAY 8/12/20
By Wednesday, Uber ramped up its response, adding that it will pull out of California if ruling is not overturned.
Earlier Wednesday, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said the company would halt service in its home state of California for a few months if a judge’s groundbreaking ruling this week is upheld on appeal.
“We will have to shut down until November,” Khosrowshahi told MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle in an interview.
He said the new version of Uber in California would result in “much smaller service, much higher prices,” harking back to the early days of Uber, when it was largely a private car service that operated nearly entirely in city centers.
THURSDAY 8/13/20
On Thursday, Uber was hammered again as they claimed drivers make $55,000 a year. CBS reported:
[Economist] Larry Mishel, who also found that most full-time Uber drivers make less than $20,000 a year, said the company’s earnings estimates fail to account for out-of-pocket costs drivers pay, such as gas and vehicle maintenance, which results in sharply lower wages.
FRIDAY 8/14/20
On Friday, both Uber and Lyft are fighting back on Seattle’s plan to pay drivers more money. Geekwire reported:
Durkan wants drivers to be paid at least the Seattle minimum wage, or $16.39 per hour. The plan is part of her “Fare Share” program introduced in September as a way to extend the city’s worker protections to gig economy drivers.
Both companies pushed back on the mayor’s announcement Thursday. Lyft called it “unworkable” and “misguided regulation.”
LegalRideshare is the first law firm in the United States to focus exclusively on Uber®, Lyft®, gig workers, bikeshare and e-scooter accidents and injuries.
