A Canadian Supreme Court ruling last week paves the way for a class action suit calling for Uber Technologies Inc. to recognize drivers in Canada as company employees, The New York Times reports.
Uber Eats driver David Heller had filed a class action suit aiming to secure a minimum wage, vacation pay and other benefits like overtime pay. Drivers are now classified as independent contractors and do not have such benefits.
Uber had sought enforcement of its arbitration agreement, which would require that arbitration be conducted in the Netherlands, where the ride-hailing firm is headquartered (Uber is based in San Francisco, but this particular operation is based in the Netherlands). The Supreme Court ruling upheld an Ontario court ruling that the arbitration clause violates provincial labor rules and is “invalid and unenforceable.”
Heller’s attorney said the decision allowing him to sue was important, but only a small first step in a case that will probably take years to litigate. Read more in The New York Times.
