Sponsored message
Audience-funded nonprofit news
radio tower icon laist logo
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Subscribe
  • Listen Now Playing Listen
News

Prop 22 Passes: California's App-Based Drivers Remain Contractors

(Illustration by Chava Sanchez/LAist)

This story is free to read because readers choose to support LAist. If you find value in independent local reporting, make a donation to power our newsroom today.

In what was the most expensive ballot measure fight in state history, gig companies led by Uber, Lyft and DoorDash succeeded in persuading voters to strip app-based drivers of employee rights they had won under a new state law.

Prop 22 was the result of fallout from AB5, a controversial state law that redefines which workers are considered independent contractors. Since AB5 went into effect at the start of 2020, judges had ruled that Uber and Lyft must treat their drivers as employees.

California voters approved Prop 22, which classifies drivers and other workers for app-based companies as independent contractors, in addition to enacting several new labor policies specifically for app-based companies.

READ THE FULL STORY:

Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily newsletters. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.

You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our connected community. We are free to tell the full truth, to hold power to account without fear or favor, and to follow facts wherever they lead. Our only loyalty is to our audiences and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen our community.

Right now, LAist has lost $1.7M in annual funding due to Congress clawing back money already approved. The support we receive from readers like you will determine how fully our newsroom can continue informing, serving, and strengthening Southern California.

If this story helped you today, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.

Your tax-deductible donation keeps LAist independent and accessible to everyone.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief

Make your tax-deductible donation today

A row of graphics payment types: Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay and PayPal, and  below a lock with Secure Payment text to the right