This morning it was announced that Uber reached a settlement with 385,000 drivers in California and Massachusetts over the classification of its drivers. Drivers were pushing to be classified as employees, where Uber took the position that they are independent contractors. In the settlements, Uber is paying $100 million in exchange for the drivers to be classified as independent contractors. Attorney Randy Gordon, Chair of Antitrust and Trade Regulation at Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP, explains:
The most important aspect of the settlement is that it preserves Uber’s position that its drivers are independent contractors, not employees.  And although this settlement doesn’t have the force of general law, it will, if approved, bind hundreds of thousands of drivers and avoid a trial of the issue in what has proven to be an unfavorable venue for Uber.  The drivers also secured some monetary relief (up to $8,000 for experienced drivers) and other concessions, including a right not to be ‘deactivated’ without reason or recourse and to organize (but on a non-union level).