Lyft

Legal experts claim the UK Supreme Court's unanimous decision could deliver a major blow to the company's business model in one important market and opens the door for drivers to claim the minimum wage and paid time off.

The UK court decision comes months after Californians voted to make Uber, Lyft and other gig economy companies exempt from local laws requiring them to class their drivers as employees rather than independent contractors.

A last-minute decision by the California First District Court of Appeal avoided the suspension of ridesharing operations by Lyft and Uber. Both companies were planning to suspend their California operations at Thursday 23:59 (Pacific Time) due to the requirement of reclassifying all Lyft drivers as employees.
Before the appeal was accepted, in a blog post, Lyft stated: "We don’t want to suspend operations. We are going to keep up the fight for a benefits model that works for all drivers and our riders."
"We are glad that the Court of Appeals recognised the important questions raised in this case, and that access to these critical services won’t be cut off while we continue to advocate for drivers’ ability to work with the freedom they want," Uber said in a statement.

The San Francisco Superior Court granted California’s request for a preliminary injunction saying that Uber and rival Lyft must make drivers employees rather than independent contractors. Judge Ethan Schulman delayed that order for ten days, giving the companies time to appeal, as both have said they will.

Dana Khosrowshahi, Uber CEO, stated: "If the court doesn’t reconsider, then in California, it’s hard to believe we’ll be able to switch our model to full-time employment quickly."

Uber and Lyft are pushing Proposition 22, a November ballot initiative that would keep drivers as freelancers entitled to some benefits and earnings guarantees.

A California judge ruled that Uber and Lyft must classify their drivers as employees in a stunning preliminary injunction issued Monday afternoon.

Uber said it planned to file an immediate emergency appeal to block the ruling from going into effect.

Massachusetts on Tuesday followed California in suing Uber and Lyft over how drivers are classified as independent contractors instead of employees entitled to extensive benefits. The complaint filed in Suffolk Superior Court claims both companies violate state minimum wage, hour and sick time laws.

"Uber and Lyft have built their billion-dollar businesses while denying their drivers basic employee protections and benefits for years," said State Attorney General Maura Healey. "This business model is unfair and exploitative. We are seeking this determination from the court because these drivers have a right to be treated fairly."

The ride-sharing provider Lyft has announced that it plans on transitioning to electric or zero-emission vehicles by 2030. They stated that "100 percent" are the goal and according to the co-founder and president, John Zimmer "Now more than ever, we need to work together to create cleaner, healthier, and more equitable communities". Lyft did not close how much the project will cost.

Lyft announced today that rides on the platform grew 26% in May compared to the previous month. Still, the company said rides are down about 70% compared to May 2019.

After the announcement, Lyft shares rose more than 4%.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, along with city attorneys from Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco, filed a lawsuit asserting Uber and Lyft misclassified their drivers as independent contractors under the state's new labor law.

According to the lawsuit, both companies gained an unfair and unlawful competitive advantage by claiming their workers were contractors.

Techcrunch reports the lawsuit, filed in the Superior Court of San Francisco, seeks $2,500 in penalties for each violation, possibly per driver, under the California Unfair Competition Law, and another $2,500 for violations against senior citizens or people with disabilities.

The company released a blog post in which they state that they'll distribute free and discounted rides. The goal is to help people "exercise their fundamental right to vote" by providing reliable and affordable access to the polling sides. In order to ensure that people can be identified which are most in need of transportation Lyft is partnering up with various nonprofit organizations.