Teamsters Blast California Supreme Court’s Anti-Worker Prop 22 Ruling

Court's Ruling Sides with Big Tech Over Working People

(WASHINGTON) - In response to the California Supreme Court's ruling to uphold Prop 22, a controversial ballot initiative that allows "gig" companies like Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, and Instacart to misclassify their workers as independent contractors rather than employees, Teamsters General President Sean M. O'Brien issued the following statement.

"This ruling from the California Supreme Court is devastating for the thousands of workers whose labor is responsible for the successes of companies like Uber and Lyft. By allowing these greedy Big Tech companies to misclassify their workers as independent contractors, the Court gives them the go ahead to undermine U.S. labor law and neglect their responsibilities to their workers.

"Whether you work for Uber, Lyft, or Amazon, you deserve overtime pay, paid sick leave, unemployment insurance, and other basic worker protections that come with employment. It is dishonest and disrespectful that these multibillion-dollar corporations are denying workers much-needed benefits so they can skip out on taxes and make workers and taxpayers foot their bill.

"Prop 22 is an obvious example of how Big Tech companies will spare no expense-in this case, more than $200 million-to bleed working people dry to pad their own profits.

"Unfortunately, we know that companies like Uber and Lyft will continue to push these brazen anti-worker initiatives nationwide. In Massachusetts, these same Big Tech firms want to write their own laws and dramatically expand misclassification of workers throughout the Commonwealth. The Teamsters absolutely will not stand for it.

"Despite the ruling in California, the Teamsters will continue to fight Big Tech's crusade against the people who make them profitable and ensure that workers everywhere have the protections they deserve."

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.3 million hardworking people in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Visit Teamster.org for more information. Follow us on Twitter @Teamsters and "like" us on Facebook at Facebook.com/teamsters.

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