What Is the Gig Economy in the Uk?

Paris Marx is joined by Yaseen Aslam to discuss the UK Supreme Court ruling that Uber drivers are not self-employed, the long fight to reach that point, and the next steps in the push for gig workers’ rights in the UK.

Yaseen Aslam is the president of the App Drivers and Couriers Union and a lead claimant in the Aslam v Uber case. Follow Yaseen on Twitter at @Yaseenaslam381 and the ADCU at @ADCUnion.

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Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Follow the podcast (@techwontsaveus) and host Paris Marx (@parismarx) on Twitter, and support the show on Patreon.

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Also mentioned in this episode:

• In February, the UK Supreme Court upheld a previous ruling the Uber drivers were not self-employed, but were covered by a “worker” status. The following month, Uber reclassified workers, but didn’t observe the Court’s definition of what it meant to be a worker.
• On September 28, Uber drivers in 8 UK cities went on strike, demanding better hourly rates and the full implementation of the Supreme Court ruling/
• The ADCU sued Uber in the Netherlands over automated dismissal and not providing drivers their data under the GDPR. In April, the court made Uber reinstate 5 drivers.
• In October, the ADCU announced it was suing Uber over its racially biased facial recognition algorithms.
• Find out more about the ADCU.

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