Government: is there nothing it won’t interfere in?
The Seattle municipal government may force Uber and Lyft drivers to unionize. The city council currently deliberating a bill that would essentially require them to join a union.
Democratic Councillor Mike O’Brien introduced legislation Wednesday that he says would help Ubert and Lyft drivers as well as other independent contractors in the sharing economy to collectively negotiate. He believes it gives them more of a voice.
“The majority of drivers for hire come from historically disadvantaged communities,” the city council noted in an issue page on its website. “Unfortunately, they are often taken advantage of by the companies that hire them or contract with them.”
The bill would also require ride-sharing independent contractors to transfer personal information to union officials, provide exclusive union representation of drivers and “authorize union officials to make agreements with companies that require drivers to be unionized as a condition of employment.
It has been reported that O’Brien has many connections to the labor movement. In his campaign website, most of the organizations that endorsed him were unions. Moreover, a legislative aide is actually a former community organizer for UNITE HERE Local 8.
Indeed, others aren’t so gullible. They know it’s a move to help the unions.
The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation (NRTW) presents the case that the Seattle city council isn’t necessarily working together to give these independent contractors a voice, but rather to make it easier for unions to organize them.
“Acting at the behest of union officials, the Seattle City Council is targeting independent drivers, such as those who contract with Uber and Lyft, for mandatory unionization and the seizure of compulsory union fees,” NRTW said in a press release. “The legality of Seattle’s imminent attempt to foist compulsory unionization on independent drivers is highly suspect and may be susceptible to legal challenge.”
Over the last few years, technological advancements have helped firms like Uber and Lyft to use digital platforms that make contracting easier, cheaper and more efficient. More importantly, these contractors essentially become their own boss and have aided in lowering the cost of an array of products and services, whether it’s going from point A to point B or to rent a room during a vacation.
Unfortunately, presidential candidates Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton have openly opposed these trends, while Department of Labor officials have chastized it. Of course, unions are adamantly against these business models.
The government, politicians and unions are trying not only to unionize independent contractors, but they’re also trying to make them as full-time employees. This means they’d pay common payroll taxes.
Here is what Seven Days Vermont writes:
“Working Vermont, a coalition of labor unions, is calling on the city to require that Uber treat its drivers as employees — instead of as independent contractors — in the temporary operating agreement it’s hashing out with the company. That would mean Uber would pay unemployment insurance and workers’ compensation for its drivers. “
And so it begins…
Leave a Comment