Matters Settled but Not Resolved: Worker Misclassification in the Rideshare Sector

A recent innovation, the ride-share sector, is the fastest growing sector of the sharingeconomy. These companies provide drivers with a mobile-based platform to find a fare and take a cut of the same, discouraging cash tipping. As advertisements for the companies suggest that these drivers can make anywhere between $20-$40 per hour, it’s no surprise that the companies are welcoming throngs of workers suffering in a sluggish economy and searching for a way to make ends meet, advertising themselves a potential vehicle for micro-entrepreneurial opportunity that allows workers to have more control and flexibility at work.This paper provides a brief examination of the relevant legal framework as concerns the misclassification of rideshare drivers; recent misclassification decisions in Oregon, Florida, and California; and the recent Uber and Lyft settlements. This analysis considers the way ridesharedrivers are impacted by the fact that no one determinative test concerning misclassification exists, and looks at the ways in which different jurisdictions have come to different conclusions regardingthe same set of workers. The article focuses on key similarities between the major misclassification tests and the essentially uniform company policies and practices applicable to each individual company’s workforce, to provide a meaningful review of the relevant facts which can guide the decision-making processes of courts, policymakers, and other stakeholders, as well as research that concerns worker classification in the ridesharing sector. This analysis reveals that upon close examination, ride share drivers are indeed misclassified as independent contractors, when in fact they are employees

The Development of Sectoral Worker Center Networks

In this article, we argue that understanding the impact of economic structures on low-wage workers requires the study of emerging worker centers and networks and that individual labor market outcomes and experiences are mediated and impacted by the work of these institutions. We focus on the formation of sectoral worker center networks and address three key issues: (1) What are some of the reasons why worker centers and worker center networks have developed? (2) How do these organizations manage their roles as labor market institutions and social movement organizations? and (3) Why did worker center networks focus on employment and in particular sectors of the low-wage labor market? We find that sector-based organizing (1) facilitates the development of worker- and sector-targeted service strategies, thereby enabling low-wage worker groups and organizations to better achieve their service and policy goals; (2) maximizes opportunities for the organizations to obtain national resources; and (3) expands the reach of organizational networks by bringing organizations together to share resources and best practices. By providing a range of worker-, employment-, and labor market–centered services in specific labor market sectors, worker centers and their networks solidify their role as labor market institutions and become more effective advocacy and social movement organizations

The Development of Sectoral Worker Center Networks

In this article, we argue that understanding the impact of economic structures on low-wage workers requires the study of emerging worker centers and networks and that individual labor market outcomes and experiences are mediated and impacted by the work of these institutions. We focus on the formation of sectoral worker center networks and address three key issues: (1) What are some of the reasons why worker centers and worker center networks have developed? (2) How do these organizations manage their roles as labor market institutions and social movement organizations? and (3) Why did worker center networks focus on employment and in particular sectors of the low-wage labor market? We find that sector-based organizing (1) facilitates the development of worker- and sector-targeted service strategies, thereby enabling low-wage worker groups and organizations to better achieve their service and policy goals; (2) maximizes opportunities for the organizations to obtain national resources; and (3) expands the reach of organizational networks by bringing organizations together to share resources and best practices. By providing a range of worker-, employment-, and labor market–centered services in specific labor market sectors, worker centers and their networks solidify their role as labor market institutions and become more effective advocacy and social movement organizations