{"id":2808,"date":"2022-01-04T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-01-04T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/?p=2808"},"modified":"2022-01-21T16:33:30","modified_gmt":"2022-01-21T16:33:30","slug":"gig-worker-prop-22","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/gig-worker-prop-22","title":{"rendered":"Gig Worker Classification: Developments in the Ongoing Battle Over California\u2019s Prop 22"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ken Green
CEO & Founder
UnionTrack<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The tables have turned, again, in California as the battle rages on over the classification of gig workers in the state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prop 22 and the Struggle Over Worker Classification<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It has been a roller coaster ride for gig workers<\/a> in California who have been trying to secure the right to be classified as employees instead of independent contractors in order to gain access to basic workplace protections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Workers Win in the Courtroom<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In May 2020, the state of California sued Uber and Lyft over the companies\u2019 classification of drivers as independent contractors. The state claimed the classification deprived drivers of the benefits to which they were entitled under Assembly Bill 5, or AB-5, which set an ABC-test standard for worker classification that placed the burden of classification on employers. The plaintiffs won their case and a preliminary injunction was issued against the companies ordering them to classify drivers as employees. That ruling was upheld by the appeals court.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not to be defeated, the companies turned to voters to defend their position, spending upwards of $200 million urging people to vote in favor of Prop 22.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Loss at the Polls<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Their strategy worked. During the November 2020 election, 59 percent of voters in California voted in favor of Proposition 22, also then-known as the App-Based Drivers as Contractors and Labor Policies Initiative, exempting app-based employers from the constraints of AB-5. While the initiative allows for some benefits for these workers, it keeps rideshare and delivery drivers who work for app-based companies classified as independent contractors, denying them access to guaranteed minimum benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Workers Win in the Courtroom, Again<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In January 2021, a group of drivers and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) sued the state to overturn Proposition 22, claiming it violates the state constitution. \u201cProp 22 is an unconstitutional attack on Californians\u2019 rights that if left unchecked will grant permission to companies like Uber and Lyft to dismantle workers\u2019 rights across the country,\u201d says Bob Schoonover<\/a>, retired president of SEIU Local 721.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lawsuit argued three main points against the constitutionality of Prop 22:<\/p>\n\n\n\n