Controversy is nothing new to the business world. Just turning on the television at night, it is likely that there will be some sort of news coverage about a corporation that "corrupt" or "controversial" for some reason. This controversy shows itself in many ways, ranging from anything such as corrupt upper management embezzling money to unfair treatment of employees. One recent example of a company that has been in the news for controversy regarding the issue of employment rights is Uber.
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| [newsweek.com] |
In 2016, a claim was filed against Uber to argue that their self-employed workers should be treated as proper employees of the company, which entails receiving the benefits that a normal full-time employee of a company would receive (vacation time, holiday and sick pay, etc). The court ruling stated that the drivers, who were previously considered self-employed, should now be considered full employees of the company.
This is an issue for Uber because it means that their business model, which is based on low cost and flexibility. This is not an issue for only Uber; it sets an unofficial precedent for other companies that run similarly with self-employed workers - unofficial because it does that actually mean they have to change any policies unless a claim is filed against their company as well. If one is filed though, then it is likely that a similar ruling will be made.
For supporters of the employment rights movement in the business world, this is a big win. They believe that many self-employed workers are doing the work of full-time employees and not receiving the benefits for it. Having the case against Uber go in their favor means that the doors have been opened for similar cases to come forward.
Who's right in this issue? Should self-employed workers really be receiving all the benefits of a full-time employee of a company, or should the companies be allowed to have different rules for them? We will just have to see as the debate goes on.
- Aaron Gomez
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