Uber and Lyft are pushing a ballot measure that would bar their drivers from full employment status, but a court could throw it out.
Less than two years after a fierce election fight in California, gig companies like Uber and Lyft are again colliding with labor groups, politicians and the courts over a ballot measure in Massachusetts that would preserve the independent status of drivers for the companies.
The Massachusetts proposition would guarantee workers a minimum wage but limit their access to other benefits offered to regular employees, similar to the ballot measure in California. And as in California, state judges could thwart the multimillion-dollar campaign being waged by gig companies.
A Massachusetts court has questioned whether the gig-work proposition violates state law, and there is a chance the November ballot measure could be thrown out this summer.
The conflict comes as state politicians from Massachusetts and other states ratchet up the pressure on ride-hailing and food-delivery companies while calling for a broader reassessment of whether the gig economy exploits those who work in it.
On Wednesday, five U.S. senators and three members of the House, including several from Massachusetts, sent letters to various gig companies, criticizing them for what the lawmakers say is their practice of misclassifying employees as independent contractors. The lawmakers are also demanding that the companies release detailed reports describing the dangers that drivers...
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