California Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers reached a legislative package allowing Uber and Lyft drivers to join a union and engage in collective bargaining while remaining classified as independent contractors. The package pairs a collective bargaining bill backed by the Service Employees International Union with a company-sponsored measure reducing insurance requirements for accidents caused by underinsured drivers, designed to lower passenger costs. The deal represents a compromise between labor and tech after the California Supreme Court confirmed drivers’ independent-contractor status and the 2020 ballot measure. The bill would affect more than 800,000 rideshare workers and still requires legislative approval.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers have struck a deal with rideshare companies Uber and Lyft to allow drivers to join a union and bargain collectively for better wages and benefits. The agreement includes a bill for collective bargaining backed by the Service Employees International Union along with a measure sponsored by Uber and Lyft that would significantly reduce the companies' insurance requirements for accidents caused by underinsured drivers, would ultimately reduce costs for passengers.
The collective bargaining bill would allow the more than 800,000 rideshare workers in California to join a union while still being classified as independent contractors. Currently, independent contracters are excluded from the National Labor Relations Act, a federal law that grants workers collective bargaining rights and protections. David Green, president of SEIU Local 721, called it the largest expansion of private sector collective bargaining in California history.
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