The UK Supreme Court says Uber drivers are workers and not contractors

LONDON – Uber on Friday lost a crucial legal battle in the UK as the country’s Supreme Court upheld the ruling that its drivers are workers and not independent contractors.

The Supreme Court unanimously voted to dismiss Uber’s appeal against the ruling. The decision could have huge implications for Uber’s UK business, as well as for the wider concert economy.

Friday’s verdict concludes a nearly five-year legal battle between Uber and a group of ex-drivers who claim they were workers entitled to employment, such as a minimum wage, vacation pay and breaks.

In 2016, a labor court ruled in favor of the drivers, led by Yaseen Aslam and James Farrar, who claimed they were Uber workers and were therefore entitled to certain labor protections.

Uber insists its drivers work on their own and act as an “agency” that connects them to passengers through an app. Uber wants to keep the legal classification of its drivers as independent contractors unchanged, arguing that drivers prefer this “concert” model because it’s more flexible; Uber also benefits from a cost perspective.

“We respect the Court’s decision that focused on a small number of drivers who used the Uber app in 2016,” Jamie Heywood, Uber’s regional general manager for northern and eastern Europe, said Friday.

“Since then we have made some significant changes to our business, guided by drivers at every step of the way. Among them, there is even more control over how they earn and provide new protections like free insurance in case of illness or injury.”

Heywood added: “We are committed to doing more and will now consult with all active drivers across the UK to understand the changes they want to see.”

The UK case echoes Uber’s legal struggle with California regulators, who last year tried to reclassify drivers of Uber and other services like Lyft as employees to give them more job protection. .

But voters supported a voting measure called Proposition 22, which exempted Uber and other concert economy platforms from reclassifying drivers as employees.

The Supreme Court ruling may jeopardize Uber’s business model in the UK Although it only affects the drivers involved in the 2016 case, in theory it is applicable to other drivers using the Uber app.

Now the company will have to go back to labor court to determine the driver group compensation. But it could face more claims from thousands of other drivers in the country.

It also has important implications for the British economy, which is believed to have a workforce of around 5.5 million people. Other companies operating a similar model to Uber are Bolt, Ola and Deliveroo.

“This verdict will undoubtedly have far-reaching implications for all operators in the concerted economy and make it difficult for companies that hire people through digital platforms to claim that they are autonomous, despite the contractual documentation that may establish otherwise.” said Helen Crossland, a partner at the British law firm Seddons.