Uber Drivers in the UK Win Key Employment Law Court Case

By Sam Thomas | 1st November 2016 | 14 min read

Uber drivers in the UK last week won a key court case against the company which means they're now classed as workers rather than self-employed.

The ruling by the London Central Employment Tribunal means Uber drivers will now be entitled to rights that workers up and down the UK enjoy, such as holiday pay, the National Living Wage and paid breaks.

The case centred on whether Uber drivers are classed as employees or self-employed. Uber describes its drivers as ‘partners’ – they’re essentially self-employed and as such, miss out on holiday pay and other benefits.

Nigel Mckay from law firm Leigh Day who represented the Uber drivers during the proceedings, said that “the ruling will impact not just on the thousands of Uber drivers working in this country, but on all workers in the so-called gig economy whose employers wrongly classify them as self-employed and deny them the rights to which they are entitled."

Shadow business minister Jack Dromey told the BBC: "Uber are going to have to fundamentally rethink how they operate in this country."

Uber have announced they will appeal the ruling.

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