Current Events Blog 1:
How would you feel if the company you worked for did not acknowledge you as an employee? How would you feel if they did not guarantee you a minimum wage? How would you feel if they could fire you without giving you any notice? When all your efforts, commitment and loyalty was taken for granted?
These are just some of the issues faced by Uber drivers across Canada and elsewhere. It is evident that what is happening with them is unjust and like employees of other organizations, they too deserve to be treated with respect under legal labour laws. They too deserve benefits, job security and a sense of stability to keep them grounded.
So, what exactly is happening to change that?
The Current Situation:
Currently, the drivers are considered as independent contractors, with the company being able to “surpass” labour laws. These include a minimum wage, overtime pay, vacation pay, pregnancy and parental leave, among many others. As a result of being treated as inferiors compared to the rest of the working class, Uber drivers of Toronto have decided to file motion to unionize with the Ontario Labour Board. This also acts a step to ensure that other app employers are unable to circumvent labour laws set in place to protect the citizens of Canada.
The purpose of the union drive is to create some sort of due process for drivers, provide them rights as employees, and most importantly give them the respect they deserve. If their motion is granted, it will impact a variety of stakeholders, including the Uber company, the drivers, and the customers.
The Company
The most significant impact would be on the company. This impact would mainly surround the financial costs incurred by the company as they would be forced to abide by labour rules and give their employees a minimum wage, benefits such as vacation pay, insurance, and access to resources available to any normal employee. All in all, with the increasing competition from similar offerings, as well as the traditional taxis, it is clear that Uber will do anything in their power to stop the unionization of their drivers.
The Drivers
Being classified as permanent employees of Uber, rather than independent contractors, works both against and in the favour of drivers.
The drivers would be classified as employees of Uber, and may not be able to pursue other job opportunities like working in parallel with competitors such as Lyft, Skip the Dishes, etc. under their contract.
But on the other hand, they would be working a secure job, with a guaranteed minimum wage, rights as employees, and due process for hiring and termination.
The Customers
For the customers, it could mean a premium in prices since Uber would have to cover the financial costs incurred due to the unionization. It could mean less drivers available since the company would put a cap on drivers at a certain time for the obvious costs reasons, but also to ensure enough shifts/hours were available to each driver.
Conclusion
It is evident that the impact of the unionization would be drastic, but it is much needed as the drivers too deserve the same rights given to fellow citizens of Canada, especially in the 21stcentury.
What are your thoughts? Is their reason for unionization valid? Or do you have any other creative solutions for them?
Sources
Mojtehedzadeh, S. (2020, January 13). ‘We will win the vote.’ Uber Black drivers file motion to unionize with Ontario labour board. Retrieved from https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2020/01/13/uber-black-drivers-file-motion-to-unionize-with-ontario-labour-board.html
Faiz Momin : EMPR200 
Hi Faiz!
great blog post! I really enjoyed the article you chose to share your thoughts on. I especially enjoyed the way you spread out your work as it shows all the topics throughout the article that you covered in your blog post. I find that a lot of uber drivers usually work as uber drivers on the side when they are not working at there main job, having said this, you made a point about driver becoming classified as permanent employees of uber which would take away the chance of working multiple jobs as there are many employers that do not accept that. Overall this was a great blog post and you chose a very interesting article to share your thoughts on!
Jasmine.
LikeLike
Hi Jasmine,
Thank you for your insightful comment. I agree with your point on drivers working for uber as a secondary job, and how a permanant classification could hinder with these employees being able to pursue multiple opportunities. Having said that, I believe the problem at hand is an issue for employees of Uber that do it full time as their primary job, but have absolutely no sense of security. I believe an effective solution to target both problems synonymously would be for Uber to state a clause in their employment contract allowing drivers to pursue other opportunities besides Uber. It will be interesting to see what happens next.
Stay Tuned,
Faiz
LikeLike