A Boston Uber driver is accusing the ride-sharing company of illegaly classifying drivers as independent contractors to avoid providing full employee benefits.
Abdel Karim Jbara filed a federal lawsuit on Thursday on behalf of all Uber drivers in Massachusetts from 2010 to the present, Boston.com reported. In it, Jbara says Uber drivers are employees and are therefore enttield to overtime pay, rest and meal breaks, wage protection and other benefits. The suit accuses Uber of misclassifying workers as “independent contractors” to avoid coughing up the perks. Related: Boston traffic is about to get even worse But Jbara is also upset about tips —or lackthereof. Jbara’s lawsuit comes less than two months after Uber settled with thousands of Massachusetts and California Uber drivers, paying them up to $100 million to keep their independent contractor classification.
“Uber misclassifies its drivers as independent contractors in order to evade these and other protections of applicable federal and state law,” the lawsuit states.
Boston driver sues Uber on behalf of Mass. drivers
An Uber spokesperson told Boston Business Journal, which first reported in the lawsuit, that “nearly 90 percent of drivers say the main reason they use Uber is because they love being their own boss. As employees, drivers would have set shifts, earn a fixed hourly wage, and lose the ability to drive with other ridesharing apps—as well as the personal flexibility they most value.”
According to the Journal report, the complaint also accuses Uber of advertising that its rides are “gratuity included,” but Uber doesn’t pay any gratuity to Uber drivers.
