Better working conditions for rideshare drivers are still a top priority for Massachusetts policymakers. New legislation in the state House and Senate would guarantee a minimum salary, paid sick leave, and other benefits in addition to pursuing collective bargaining rights across firms, as with previous efforts. Uber and Lyft would also be required to pay for some driver expenses and contribute funds to the government’s unemployment insurance program.
Whether drivers are employed or independent contractors would not be determined under the new legislation. However, Jason Lewis, a co-sponsor of the Senate bill, told the State House News Service that his legislation would establish criteria that would be applicable to all drivers. Lewis claims that previous measures would have required employees to bargain for perks that are now provided.
2020 saw a legal battle between Massachusetts and Uber and Lyft over the company’s claimed mis-classification of drivers as contractors and denial of state labor law protections. In response, the businesses put out a ballot initiative that would have provided incentives for drivers to be regarded as independent contractors. That idea was denied by the state’s Supreme Judicial Court in June.
Uber and Lyft have been contacted for comment. The Service Employees International Union, a bill supporter, claims that the law “rewrites the rules” and provides drivers with the conditions they have been asking for more than ten years. The Massachusetts Coalition for Independent Work, a business-run group opposed to the legislation, has previously argued that bills providing employee status do not reflect the “great majority” of drivers who wish to continue working as independent contractors. The coalition favors legislation that would establish portable benefits accounts as well as the anti-employee ballot initiative.
It’s simply one front in a bigger conflict, but the state has been one of the main battlegrounds for ridesharing working conditions. Uber and the Taxi and Limousine Commission of New York City have argued over pay increases, while attempts to exempt Uber and Lyft from a California bill that would reclassify many gig economy workers as employees have failed.
