Uber called its recent union deal ‘historic.’ A new complaint alleges it was actually against the law.
This story was updated on May 2 to reflect the agreement with the drivers’ union by Waymo, as well as the latest complaint. Here is the current complaint filed against Uber. It was filed on April 25 by the National Labor Relations Board.
Uber drivers for the past few months have been under attack. That was before the company and the drivers’ union came to an agreement on Friday. After the deal was completed, Uber announced the plan for a “free, fair and collaborative” election.
Uber’s deal with the union represents an unprecedented settlement that could reshape the future of ride-sharing in America. Waymo’s unionized drivers have been fighting for better pay and working conditions for a very long time.
After the deal was announced, drivers filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board alleging that Uber, as an “employer” under federal labor law, must bargain with its employees. The unionization attempt had been ongoing since February, when Uber agreed to end its controversial practice of testing its drivers’ eligibility for a driver’s license.
Uber filed a motion to dismiss the NLRB complaint, arguing that the agreement with the union represents a “legitimate, good faith and lawful contract that can and does exist.”
At the end of the day, the NLRB complaint against Uber will not go away. The agreement will go into effect 90 days after it gets a final judge’s approval. And the NLRB complaint will then go before the full bench of the NLRB.
The complaint alleges that Uber had violated the National Labor Relations Act three different times.
The first violation is when Uber attempted to eliminate the unionization effort. “In May 2018, the App’s General Counsel advised the Company of the union’s unionization effort and the Company stated that the company could not change its App,” the complaint states.
This was a violation of Section 8(a)(5) of the NLRA since Uber was attempting to force the union on its drivers and was allegedly making an