The new ordinance, which applies not just to drivers with ride-hailing companies, but also to taxicab and other contracted, for-hire drivers, will give them the option to form a union and bargain together for their contracts.
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Seattle City Councilmember Mike O’Brien speaking at an October event in support of his bill to allow Uber and Lyft drivers to unionize.
Both Uber and Lyft will be required to give the city a list of drivers, which a nonprofit or union will then use to contact and sign up drivers, ultimately with the goal of functioning as the majority’s bargaining representative.
The Seattle City Council’s unanimous decision Monday to allow drivers for Uber and other firms to organize isn’t the beginning of the end for the so-called on-demand economy. He added innovation can continue to happen, but it shouldn’t be done at the expense of workers. Now that it’s passed, how the system will work is that all drivers who have a Seattle for-hire vehicle licenses that have performed what the city calls a minimum threshold of trips can be eligible to participate in the union.
Previously, drivers for ride-sharing companies were considered independent contractors and were exempt from multiple labor laws that dealt with wages and working conditions. Murray anxious about the unknown costs of administering the measure, the burden of rulemaking on city staff and the potential costs of defending it court. But Seattle marks the first time that drivers have had sufficient initiative to fight for their right to bargain directly with these companies themselves, a moment that is as pivotal for ride-hail companies as it is for the future of the American labor movement. “Drivers say that with flexible and independent work with Uber, 50% of them drive fewer than 10 hours a week, 70% have full-time or part-time work outside of Uber and 65% choose to vary the hours they drive 25% week-to-week”.
Uber’s classification of its drivers as independent contractors means drivers are not entitled to many standard worker rights, like minimum wage, overtime, or mileage reimbursements.
There are likely to be legal challenges that could kill the Seattle measure. By clearing drivers to unionize, Seattle is attempting to create a present-day solution to thorny employment questions that might not be resolved for a very long time.
O’Brien said he hopes companies won’t challenge the ordinance if it passes, but he acknowledged that this is something that hasn’t been tried before.
While drivers and activists flooded out of City Council chambers to offer congratulations on Monday afternoon, many said that the battle was not yet over.
Speaking at the Think Tank conference in Sydney on Monday, Rohrsheim said keeping drivers as contractors rather than employees allows the driver to drive as they please and work the hours that they want, and they may even be utilising other ride-booking apps at the same time.
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The Teamsters Union Local 117 also celebrated the vote, while the National Right To Work Legal Foundation criticized it as a violation of drivers’ rights. “But workers aren’t going to be stopped”, she said.
