Gig economy drivers are planning to file a class-action lawsuit against e-hailing service Uber in an effort to get full employment status and benefits for their work.
Technology disrupter Uber is the world’s largest online taxi booking service valued at $102bn (about R1.5-trillion), and is said to control about three quarters of the private taxi business in SA since 2018. Despite the innovation it has brought to modern commuting, gig economy drivers have been fighting to get greater recognition in the form of guaranteed salaries, health insurance and other benefits for a number of years.
As part of growing global pressure against the gig economy — a labour market characterised by the prevalence of short-term contracts or freelance work as opposed to permanent jobs — Uber drivers in SA are fighting for greater protection under the law and earning above the minimum wage.
Law firms Mbuyisa Moleele Attorneys, based in Johannesburg, and London’s Leigh Day said they were preparing to file a class action in the Johannesburg labour court against Uber BV and Uber SA on behalf of SA Uber drivers.
Despite having filed similar cases in the past, local drivers were encouraged by a ruling against Uber in the UK. Last week the UK supreme court dismissed an appeal by the ride-hailing service against a lower court’s judgment that its drivers should be classified as workers rather than self-employed. This is not the first time that Uber has lost such a case.
The UK ruling is a potential game changer for SA, as the two countries’ legal systems are similar. Mbuyisa Moleele and Leigh Day note that local laws regarding employment status and rights, the Labour Relations Act and the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, are very similar to UK employment law.
The claim, which will be based on the drivers’ entitlement to rights as employees under SA legislation, will seek compensation for unpaid overtime and holiday pay.
The UK court found that despite Uber creating the impression that it is merely an agent platform between drivers and consumers, the true position was that under employment legislation Uber has control over the way in which drivers deliver their services. Through its app, Uber controls the amount of the fare, the flow of information between drivers and passengers, while monitoring drivers’ performance through its rating system, in which the company has the option of deactivating drivers who do not conform to its standards.
SA’s gig economy is home to about 23,000 drivers that work for the two largest operators.
While this case is aimed at Uber, the outcome is likely to affect its competitor, Bolt, which has about 10,000 drivers in SA compared with the more than 13,000 of Uber. The lawyers estimate the class action could cover as many as 20,000 drivers that use the Uber app locally.
Though legislation differs around the world, if Uber — said to have 27,000 employees worldwide by 2019 — were to have all its drivers declared as employees, its balance sheet would overnight be saddled with more than 3-million people that have to be provided for monthly.
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