Could Unions Disrupt Uber’s Empire?

[eridani]

http://www.thenation.com/article/could-unions-disrupt-ubers-empire/

Rebecca Smith of National Employment Law Project sees the Seattle rule as a promising model for driver organizing, in part because it is both flexible and complementary to existing legal frameworks. The Seattle ordinance treats drivers as independent contractors, but does not aim to preempt or conflict with federal wage-and-hour laws. So if Uber drivers are found to be employees under federal labor law, they can still enjoy the collective bargaining rights established by Seattle’s government.

“The genius of this ordinance is that it calls the company’s bluff,” Smith says. “Essentially the workers have said, If you want to treat us like independent contractors, then the city can allow us to collectively bargain as independent contractors.”

The unionization ordinance challenges Uber with an inversion of the rideshare sector’s infamous “have it both ways” scheme, in which they control “app users” as if they were employees while avoiding responsibilities and expenses related to taxation, regulatory compliance and insurance.