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Gig economy

U.K. top court gives Uber drivers benefits in landmark ruling

by Associated Press
Feb 19, 2021
Uber drivers in Britain should be classed as “workers” and not self-employed, the U.K. Supreme Court ruled Friday.
An Uber sticker on a car during a protest by ride-share drivers in 2020. How ride-share and other gig workers are classified remains controversial.
Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images
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COVID & Unemployment

Big jump in unemployment benefit claims from gig workers

by Erika Beras
Jan 21, 2021
More people are relying on gig work, which puts a lot of risk on the workers themselves.
An Uber driver participates in a car rally calling for basic employment rights in August 2020 in Los Angeles.
Mario Tama/Getty Images
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What's in a name? Company titles for gig workers reveal business models.

by Sam Harnett
Jan 20, 2021
"Dasher," "tasker," "driver-partner." How companies pick worker nicknames that reflect the argument that workers are contractors, not employees.
An Uber sticker on a car during a protest by ride-share drivers in 2020. How ride-share and other gig workers are classified remains controversial.
Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images
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Elections 2020

California ballot measure keeps "gig" in gig economy

by Meghan McCarty Carino
Nov 4, 2020
Prop 22 bypasses a state law that would have reshaped the gig economy.
A ride share driver participates in a protest against Proposition 22 in August in Los Angeles, California.
Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images
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Elections 2020

Gig companies throw lots of cash -- and tech -- at California ballot measure

by Sam Harnett
Oct 26, 2020
The ballot initiative in California would allow companies like Uber and Lyft to keep classifying workers as contractors.
A ride-share driver holds up a sign urging Californians to vote "no" on Prop 22 in Oakland, California, on Oct. 9, 2020.
Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images
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Reimagining the Economy

The gig economy and how workers might win it back

by David Brancaccio , Erika Soderstrom and Alex Schroeder
Aug 31, 2020
One way to rethink the "sharing economy" involves setting up co-ops on apps.
Mario Tama/Getty Images
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Uber, Lyft threaten to stop service in California

by Nova Safo
Aug 20, 2020
The dispute could put jobs at stake during the pandemic.
The conflict has come after a judge supported a state law that classifies drivers as employees, not contractors.
Mario Tama/Getty Images
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Reimagining the Economy

Organizing labor in an era of temporary work and the gig economy

by David Brancaccio , Daniel Shin and Meredith Garretson
Aug 20, 2020
The labor movement of the future moves beyond traditional collective bargaining, says former SEIU Local 26 President Javier Morillo.
The challenge facing the labor movement today, and in the last decades, has been to adjust to an economy that doesn’t depend on industrial jobs, but temporary workers.
Scott Olson/Getty Images
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Uber and Lyft have to classify drivers as employees, California judge orders

by David Brancaccio , Kristin Schwab and Alex Schroeder
Aug 11, 2020
The ride-hailing companies now have 10 days to appeal the ruling.
Gig companies have expressed they want to give their contract employees some sorts of benefits but not classify them as employees. Union leaders have said they are willing to reach a compromise.
Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images
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COVID & Unemployment

Gig workers worry about losing federal jobless benefits

by Mitchell Hartman
Jul 23, 2020
If the $600-a-week pandemic payment disappears, many may have trouble covering their basic expenses.
Gig workers have received unemployment benefits many would not have been entitled to before pandemic assistance began.
Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images
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