This appears to be the final ruling for Uber in the United Kingdom. The \u201cnot a taxi-firm\u201d ride hailing service has already appealed three previous court decisions in the UK, all of which said that drivers should not be considered independent.<\/p>\n
With the latest ruling coming from the nation\u2019s supreme court, there\u2019s nowhere left for Uber to appeal. The courts ruling says a driver should be considered working not just when driving a passenger, but when they are logged int the app.<\/p>\n
[Read: How do you build a pet-friendly gadget? We asked experts and animal owners<\/a>]<\/em><\/p>\n As cited by the Beeb, the court backed up its decision citing four key factors, if ever you needed a clear description of why drivers should be considered employees here they are:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n While Uber does afford drivers a huge amount of flexibility and control over when they work, the bits that really matter when it comes to running a business are controlled and run by the ride-sharing firm.<\/p>\n Under Uber\u2019s iron fist, drivers are not independent workers, free to dictate the exact terms of how they work, what they earn, and how they handle complaints. They are subordinates in the gig-work empire<\/a>, or if you prefer something more visceral, they are exploited workers.<\/p>\n Earlier this week, Uber outlined its plans<\/a> to bring its California-oriented \u201cProp 22\u201d standards for gig-work to the EU. While the UK is no longer part of the European Union, its supreme court\u2019s ruling sets an undeniable precedent that\u2019s at odds with the ruling from the US last year.<\/p>\n Last November, US voters passed Prop 22 in California<\/a> meaning that firms reliant on gig-workers, like Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash, don\u2019t have to pay a full suite of employee benefits like health care, paid sick leave, and holiday pay. But they do give drivers some perks they didn\u2019t have previously, you can read more about that here<\/a> and here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Ultimately, Prop 22 is still weighted in Uber\u2019s favor. However, in the UK it has no such fall back, and speculation is mounting as to how Uber will continue to operate in the country now that it has to front the operating costs that it should have been paying all along.<\/p>\n It could lead to increased costs for riders, or Uber will face an even longer uphill slog to that elusive goal: profitability<\/a>.<\/p>\n SHIFT<\/a> is brought to you by Polestar. It\u2019s time to accelerate the shift to sustainable mobility. That is why Polestar combines electric driving with cutting-edge design and thrilling performance.<\/i> Find out how<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/p>\n Published February 19, 2021 \u2014 13:33 UTC <\/p>\n\n
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