This archive report was first published on 21 August 2021.
On November 5, 2020, California voters approved Proposition 22, a ballot initiative backed by Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, and other gig economy companies. The law carved out a third classification for workers, granting gig workers limited benefits while preventing them from being considered employees of the tech giants.
However, the constitutionality of the law was challenged in court by drivers and the Service Employees International Union. They argued that Prop. 22 was unconstitutional because it limited the State Legislature's ability to allow workers to organize and have access to workers' compensation.
On Friday evening, a California Superior Court judge ruled that Prop. 22 is indeed unconstitutional and unenforceable. The judge, Frank Roesch, stated that the law violated California's Constitution because it restricted the Legislature from making gig workers eligible for workers' compensation.
"The entirety of Proposition 22 is unenforceable," Judge Roesch wrote in his ruling. This decision has created fresh legal upheaval in the long battle over the employment rights of gig workers.
Veena Dubal, a professor at the University of California's Hastings College of Law, praised the judge's decision. "It was written in such a comprehensive way to prevent the workers from having access to any rights that the Legislature decided," she said.
But the gig economy companies are not giving up. An Uber spokesman said the ruling ignored the majority of California voters who supported Prop. 22. "We will appeal, and we expect to win," the spokesman said.
