WORCESTER, Mass.—Staying versatile with their schedules is one thing rideshare and supply drivers say they want.
“I’m a single mother,” one driver stated. “I don’t just do rideshare apps, I don’t just do DoorDash. I’m also a nurse assistant and I also go to Quinsigamond to be a registered nurse.”
A lawsuit in Massachusetts may quickly pressure these drivers to develop into workers, fairly than impartial contractors. Drivers must work set schedules and probably solely work for a single ridesharing app.
Drivers in Central Massachusetts spoke out in opposition to the difficulty Tuesday.
“Lyft, Uber, all of these apps have given me the ability to pay and maintain and keep my children in a home and fed and all of the above,” one other driver stated.
The advocacy goes past the drivers. Businesses alongside Shrewsbury Street say ridesharing not solely was a protected choice for many but in addition helped the native financial system via COVID-19.
“It’s a benefit in both getting my employees here, but also getting my customers here and home safely, soundly,” Paul Barber stated, proprietor of the Flying Rhino Cafe.
“A lot of the restaurants may not have made it,” Alex Guardiola stated, who serves as Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Policy for the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce. “We changed the way we did business. We said, ‘We can’t go in the doors, but we still need access to good food, making sure that we’re helping our small businesses.’”
The legislation would additionally require rideshare and supply firms to ensure a minimal quantity of compensation, present extra advantages and forestall driver termination primarily based on issues like race and sexual orientation.
“Being an employee won’t work for my family, but gig work does,” a driver stated. “And I know I’m making a positive impact in my own home.”
Now the difficulty of getting rideshare drivers be impartial contractors was really scheduled to be on the poll, however a Massachusetts court docket shot it down just some weeks in the past. Advocates Tuesday are nonetheless hoping they will get that query on the poll within the close to future.