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With Daniel Lippman
CHAMBER GOES AFTER ENHANCED UNEMPLOYMENT: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce this morning seized on April’s vastly underwhelming jobs numbers, laying the blame on the federal $300 enhanced unemployment included in President
Joe Biden’s relief package and calling for the benefit to be scrapped.
Lyft spent $430,000, DoorDash $120,000, and Instacart $100,000 on lobbying on the PRO Act and other issues, according to disclosures.
The PRO Act would make the most pivotal changes to labor law since the 1970s. In addition to giving many gig workers the right to unionize, it would grant employees whistleblower protections and prohibit companies from retaliating against participants in strikes and other union-related activities. A 2019 report from Gallup commissioned by Intuit estimated that 17 percent of U.S. adults engaged in self-employment.
“[There are] good guys and women on Wall Street, but Wall Street didn’t build this country, the middle class built the country and unions built the middle class,” Biden said during his joint address. “So that’s why I’m calling on Congress to pass Protect the Right to Organize Act, the PRO Act, and send it to my desk, so we can support the right to unionize.”
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.
Uber, Lyft have a California playbook to fight proposed U.S. rules on workers
Reuters | May 03, 2021 04:24 PM EDT
A sign marks a rendezvous location for Lyft and Uber users at San Diego State University in San Diego, California, U.S. (Photo : REUTERS/Mike Blake)
Uber, Lyft and other gig-economy companies face a new challenge from the Biden administration to their use of contract workers, but as they gear up for a fight in Washington they could turn to a lobbying playbook that helped them score a decisive win against California regulators last year.
U.S. President Joe Biden campaigned on the promise of providing legal protections and benefits to gig workers, who as independent contractors generally have no access to unemployment insurance, sick pay and health insurance. U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh said last week: A lot of gig workers should be classified as employees.
Gig Firms Know How to Fight to Save Their Business Model
Uber, Lyft and other gig-economy companies face a new challenge from the Biden administration to their use of contract workers, but as they gear up for a fight in Washington they could turn to a lobbying playbook that helped them score a decisive win against California regulators last year.
U.S. President Joe Biden campaigned on the promise of providing legal protections and benefits to gig workers, who as independent contractors generally have no access to unemployment insurance, sick pay and health insurance. U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh said last week: “A lot of gig workers should be classified as employees.”