Last week, a California court reversed a previous law which would have forced ride-sharing app companies to treat their drivers as employees. The reversal of the Assembly Bill 5 (AB5) will benefit Uber and Lyft drivers; however, truckers remain excluded from its protection.
Uber and Lyft celebrated a major court win after the California Supreme Court ruled their ballot measure, Proposition 22, constitutional. The decision was met with an enthusiastic stock market reaction as shares of both companies rose in response to the news. It should be noted that part of the proposition limiting gig workers’ ability to unionize was struck down by justices; however, this does not dampen industry optimism surrounding legal precedent set by the ruling.
In November 2020, California voters made a clear statement in favor of Prop 22 by passing it with an impressive 60% majority. The passage of Prop 22 means that app-based drivers will remain independent contractors as AB 5 exemptions are upheld for the foreseeable future.
Despite the appeals court’s ruling on AB 5 in California, trucking industry groups are forging ahead with their legal challenge – a motion for an injunction filed last year. California’s deadline to respond has been extended until March 29th, meaning the industry will have to wait a bit longer for the result for their challenge.
Source: CCJDigital
