Are Lyft and Uber drivers employees? Juries will decide
Operators of the popular Lyft and Uber ride-sharing smartphone applications say drivers who use their own private vehicles to transport passengers who find them via the apps are independent contractors.
But federal judges in two separate San Francisco class actions against the companies aren’t so sure, reports the Los Angeles Times (sub. req.). On Wednesday, the judges said whether drivers are contractors or employees is a question for the jury in each case to decide. If drivers are employees, that could add considerably to the companies’ operating costs and potentially subject them to fines for underpaying employment tax obligations.
Meawhile, an Uber driver in Portland, Oregon, has filed a federal lawsuit over a data breach that reportedly affected some 50,000 of her fellow contractors with the ride-sharing company.
Filed Thursday in San Francisco by Sasha Antman, it seeks class action status and $5 million in damages, reports Reuters.
Citing a California state law, Antman contends the company should have done more to protect drivers’ names and personal numbers from being accessed and should have disclosed the data breach sooner. It reportedly happened last spring and was discovered by Uber in September but wasn’t made public by Uber until last month.
Uber could not immediately be reached for comment but previously stated that driver information did not appear to have been misused.
Related coverage:
TIME: “Uber Data Breach Put 50,000 Drivers’ Info at Risk”
See also:
ABA Journal: “Internet car companies offer convenience, but lawyers see caution signs”
ABAJournal.com: “Are tech elite above the law? Columnist questions whether industry promotes lawless hubris”
