San Francisco company's case may 'revive weakened California law,' legal experts say

Uber Technologies Inc. agreed to pay a total of $8.4 million following a lawsuit that included California drivers who argued they were misclassified as contractors instead of company employees, sparking talks of the revival of a recently weakened California law.

The settlement, approved by the US District Court in the Northern District of California on July 21, applies to drivers who used the Uber Rides app in California between February 28, 2019, and December 16, 2020.

It also applies to drivers who used the Uber EATS App in the state between June 28, 2016, and October 7, 2021, and who rejected Uber’s arbitration agreement.

AB5

Based on the California Assembly Bill 5, signed into law in September 2019, a worker should be recognized as an employee rather than an independent contractor unless the employer proves that the worker meets all of the following conditions:

• The person is free from the control and direction of the hiring entity in connection with the performance of the work, both under the contract for the performance of the work and in fact.
• The person performs work outside the usual course of the hiring entity’s business.
• The person is customarily engaged in an independently established trade, occupation, or business of the same nature as that involved in the work performed.

Reports have shown that cases of misclassifying workers as independent contractors are becoming rampant...

Read Full Story: https://www.hcamag.com/us/specialization/employment-law/uber-enters-into-84-m...