Isn't this what it means to be a contractor?
When the contractee doesn't need your labor then they don't hire you.
If your want guaranteed work become an employee.
When the contractee doesn't need your labor then they don't hire you.
If your want guaranteed work become an employee.
I have no doubt that Uber and Lyft are in some ways doing this to game the system and I really don't want to defend how they treat their drivers.
But at the same time, if you are going to be paying an hourly wage you would expect some threshold of work activity during that time. If there are too many drivers on the road and that utilization is too low, than you are paying for people that you don't need.
That is how most hourly jobs work, you hire for the amount of work (or expected amount of work) that you expect needs to be done with an expectation of busy time.
All of the reporting has been about screwing over the drivers, but it seems like a thing you would do in any normal situation. The problem here is these companies before the law could have any number of cars on the road and it didn't matter how many people were using it. And any of the drivers were not interviewed in a traditional sense for the work.
This is more like a business needs an employee to work, but they will book someone else who is below a regulatory threshold to avoid you being considered “full-time”.
This usually results in more regulations or unions.
If Uber drivers are contractors, fine. But then Uber should not be able to micromanage every aspect of the contractor's work.
You can offer them $X (i.e. set/negotiate pay).
You can tell them what hours they can have access to your building (i.e. set hours).
You can restrict their tools. (i.e. no flame torch, only ProPress).
You can set expectations. (i.e. transfer the passenger from pointA to pointB).
Afaik, you can't restrict their employment so no you can't drive for Lyft. While you can with employee.
What restrictions does Uber do that they couldn't do over a different contractor?
It might not be good for the US to transform into a Gig Economy but that's an entirely different discussion.
The question then becomes: are these workers breaking the law when they obstruct the streets and inconvenience 3rd parties. Does the law not apply to them because they are workers in a labor dispute? If not, which laws can and cant they break with impunity?
If someone drags my life into their personal negotiation and breaks the law, I think they should face the consequences.
Nothing wrong with drivers wanting to be employees. However, they should be upfront with what they want.