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Last fall, California voters approved a ballot measure exempting workers for companies like Uber and Lyft from a state law requiring drivers to be classified as employees and thus guaranteeing them minimum pay and benefits.
Now, advocates think Massachusetts is about to become the next battleground.
“They’re going to try to do here what they did in California with Prop 22, which is buy themselves the law that they like,” attorney Shannon Liss-Riordan said during a press conference Tuesday organized by the labor-backed Coalition to Protect Workers’ Rights.
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The group is anticipating a $100 million 2022 ballot campaign (primarily backed by Uber and Lyft) to change Massachusetts law to allow ride-hailing drivers and potentially other workers to be classified as “independent contractors.”
Surge pricing is back in Massachusetts. Download our mobile app for iOS or Android to get alerts for local breaking news and weather.
It s something rideshare driver Stephen Levine is counting on to make some money.
Levine took nine months off the road during the pandemic because he was afraid of being too close to strangers. And with most people at home anyway, there wasn t much to be made. The money was awful, said Levine, who says he contracted COVID-19 from a passenger at the very beginning of the pandemic. When there s no business, it s just not worth it.
Surge pricing coming to an end in Massachusetts during the state of emergency was a problem for drivers.
Could Boston s Uber shortage come to an end with surge pricing back? boston.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from boston.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
In reversing a Trump labor rule, Biden administration takes aim at âgig economyâ
By Jim Puzzanghera Globe Staff,Updated May 5, 2021, 2 hours ago
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A demonstration last October against Proposition 22, a ballot measure to exempt companies like Uber from state labor laws requiring them to treat gig workers as employees. Voters approved the measure in November.JIM WILSON/NYT
WASHINGTON â Tech companies like Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, and Instacart have disrupted the US economy by creating a labor force of millions of so-called gig workers. Now Washington appears poised to disrupt the disruptors, taking the first step Wednesday in what appears to be a larger battle with industry giants to give those workers more rights.
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The shortage of rideshare vehicles on the roads these days is not just a nuisance for people who are waiting a long time to get an Uber or a Lyft. For some, it is becoming a safety issue.
Women say they are very concerned after getting stranded in neighborhoods late at night with no way to get home. Download our mobile app for iOS or Android to get alerts for local breaking news and weather.
Cijalene Scott waited 45 minutes trying to get an Uber outside of Back Bay Station around 11 p.m. on a recent night. Eventually, she gave up on requesting and decided to walk a half hour by herself to her dorm.