Great Britain: Uber to pay drivers the minimum wage and recognize benefits that are normally due to ‘workers’

Less than a month after the Supreme Court ruled that Uber drivers were not self-employed but instead were ‘workers’ (c.f. article No.12369), the U.S. platform has reacted by announcing that it would guarantee its private hire vehicle drivers new rights as of 17 March (c.f. press release). Thus, Uber drivers – who can always decide when and where they work – will now benefit from the legal minimum wage, currently set at £8.72 per hour (€10.19) for those over 25 years of age, when they accept a ride; paid holidays calculated at 12.07% of their earnings over 15 days; free insurance allowing them to take sick leave or parental leave; and finally, they will benefit from automatic pension fund membership for their retirement, with contributions made by both Uber and the driver. The trade unions have welcomed Uber’s announcement and anticipate a snowball effect. Jamie Heywood, regional general manager for Northern Europe at Uber assured that the group hopes “that all other operators will join us in improving the quality of work for these important workers (who are an essential part of our everyday lives).” However, some are disappointed by the fact that the legal minimum wage is only being paid when a ride is accepted, whereas the Supreme Court had made it clear that drivers have ‘worker’ status as soon as they log in to the app. Alex Marshall, president of IWGB union stated, “There is more that needs to be done for Uber to comply with the law.”