From Reuters, Heather Somerville reports that San Francisco’s city attorney has subpoenaed records on how drivers were classified from Lyft and Uber. California’s Supreme Court recently changed the standard for determining if a worker is an employee or independent contractor and the San Francisco city attorney is looking to see if Lyft and Uber comply with the new standard. Heather reports:
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – San Francisco’s city attorney on Tuesday subpoenaed Uber Technologies Inc [UBER.UL] and Lyft Inc to turn over records relating to how the ride-hailing companies classify drivers, as well as driver wages, health care and other benefits, the latest demand in a year-long investigation.
City Attorney Dennis Herrera said he was seeking evidence to determine whether Uber and Lyft are in compliance with a recent California Supreme Court decision that makes it much easier for workers to prove they are employees entitled to benefits and protections, rather than independent contractors.
Herrera said he was seeking evidence to show whether Uber and Lyft have lawfully classified drivers as independent contractors, or are providing minimum wage, sick leave, health care and paid parental leave.
Legal experts say many companies, including San Francisco-based Uber and Lyft, may have to raise pay or provide more benefits to workers due to the court decision last month, which adopted a new test for determining whether workers are employees.Companies that want to classify workers as independent contractors must now prove they are not under their direct control, do not perform a core function of their business and are engaged in an independent business.
Uber and Lyft drivers are classified as independent contractors, and the majority lack paid sick and vacation days and must pay their own expenses, such as car maintenance and gasoline.
Read the full story at San Francisco subpoenas Uber, Lyft on driver classification | Reuters
