The actwould also require rideshare and delivery network companies tooffer new protections and benefits, including insurance to coveron-the-job injuries and health care subsidies for qualifyingdrivers. (Photo: Shutterstock)

In response to a recently enacted California law requiringcertain gig workers to be classified as employees and notindependent contractors, a coalition led by Uber, Lyft and DoorDashhave announced a November 2020 state ballot measure to counteractthe new law—as well as add new protections and benefits toworkers.

The Protect App-Based Drivers & Services Act,if approved by voters, would allow drivers with rideshare anddelivery network companies to be classified as independentcontractors, enabling them "the flexibility to set their own hoursfor when, where and how they work."

Related: What does California's new gig rule mean for healthinsurance coverage?

"Recent legislation" AB-5 "has threatened to take away theflexible work opportunities of hundreds of thousands ofCalifornians, potentially forcing them into set shifts andmandatory hours, taking away their ability to make their owndecisions about the jobs they take and the hours they work," themeasure states.

The act would also require rideshare and delivery networkcompanies to offer new protections and benefits for their drivers,including minimum compensation levels of at least 120 percent ofminimum wage, insurance to cover on-the-job injuries, automobileaccident insurance, health care subsidies for qualifying drivers,protection against harassment and discrimination, and mandatorycontractual rights and appeal processes.

"This ballot measure is going to be a win-win," Jermaine Brown,a Sacramento rideshare driver who works with both Uber and Lyft,says in the press release announcing the measure.

"Not only do drivers get to keep our flexible schedules, but wealso get new benefits like healthcare and more earnings potential,"Brown says. "I'm a stay at home dad. I do things with my kidsduring the day and drive in the evening. Being able to have thatflexibility and being able to drive how I want to drive reallyhelps me and my family."

Other app-based drivers told TechCrunch they support being classified asemployees per the new California law, based on the passage ofAssembly Bill No. 5 (Lorena Gonzalez – D, San Diego.)

"This is yet another example of corporations and billionairestrying to exempt themselves from the democratic process by usingwealth and fear tactics," Edan Alva, a driver and organizer of thegroup, Gig Workers Rising, says in a statement emailed toTechCrunch.

"For years, these companies have refused to pay drivers fairlyor treat us with respect," Alva says. "After working 80 hour weeks,sleeping in our cars and surviving on poverty wages, driversorganized and won support for AB-5 from both the public andlawmakers."

However, other workers only work as drivers to supplement theirincome from their main jobs and prefer to be classified asindependent contractors, according to the measure's pressrelease.

"I'm a real estate broker and drive with DoorDash because I canfit it in my schedule and supplement my income," says IssyTindimwebwa, a DoorDash driver from Los Angeles. "When I have freetime, or when I have something I need to raise money for quickly, Ijust go to my app and off I go. If I were an employee, I would notget that. This ballot measure would be great for me because itwould enhance my ability to make more money, while at the same timeallowing me the flexibility to do what I want any time I want."

"I work eight hours a day at a homeless shelter as a cook and Ido rideshare on my way to work and on my way home," says LorraineHanks, a Lyft driver who lives in San Francisco. "If I were anemployee, I wouldn't get the same flexibility and would probablyhave to quit driving. San Francisco is so expensive to live that Ineed the extra money. Without my rideshare job and the extraincome, I'd be a paycheck away from homeless."

The ballot measure also calls for new customer and public safetyprotections. The act, if passed, would provide for recurringbackground checks of drivers, mandatory safety training of drivers,zero tolerance for alcohol and drug offenses and a cap on driverhours per day to prevent sleepy driving.

Read more: 

• The gig economy, its workers and groupbenefits
• Why California's new gig worker bill is right–andwrong
• It's time to do something about the financialperils of gig work