Uber's control of drivers intense and unrelenting, court hears
Friday, 1 July 2022
Uber used intense and unrelenting control of the drivers who took passengers and delivered food, a lawyer acting for two unions representing some of the men has told the Employment Court.
A group of drivers for Uber and Uber Eats – through unions E Tū and First Union – have asked the Employment Court to declare that they are employees.
This would mean they would have the same rights as other employees like bereavement and holiday leave and pay equity.
Lawyer Peter Cranney said drivers were in an inherently unequal position and therefore vulnerable.
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**
They could not negotiate different terms and had to agree to use the app, he said.
The terms of the agreement they signed were difficult, even for lawyers to understand, Cranney said.
“You could put Albert Einstein in the vehicle, and he would be just as vulnerable, once he had signed the contract.”
Uber controlled what information the drivers got, he said.
There was an obligation to do some work and if they did not, they got cut off.
Cranney said the rating system was a key tool and Uber monitored the ratings.
The relationship was one of employment and the contracts were employment agreements, he said.
Lawyer for the companies that make up Uber in New Zealand Gillian Service had told the judge the drivers worked for themselves and the companies were intermediaries.
The companies are Rasier Operations BV, Uber Portier BV, Uber BV, Portier New Zealand Ltd and Rasier New Zealand Ltd.
Chief Employment Court judge Christina Inglis reserved her decision.