Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Despite Last-Minute Changes, Senate Bill Deals Big Blow to Renewable Energy

9 hours ago

Trump-Backed Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Passes US Senate

11 hours ago

Homeland Security Secretary Noem Says CNN May Be Prosecuted Over Report on Migration App

11 hours ago

Israeli Officials to Hold Ceasefire Talks in Washington Amid Military Escalation in Gaza

12 hours ago

Trump Escalates Feud With Musk, Threatens Tesla, SpaceX Support

12 hours ago

Musk Vows to Punish Lawmakers Who Back Trump’s Spending Bill

1 day ago

Will Valadao Spoil Trump’s Plan for July 4th ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ Signing?

1 day ago

Shaver Lake and Reedley 4th of July Shows Are Wednesday. Who Else Is Celebrating?

1 day ago
Assembly Votes to Tighten Rules on Independent Contractors
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
May 30, 2019

Share

SACRAMENTO — California residents working for companies like Lyft and Uber would get the rights of employees entitled to a minimum wage and workers compensation under a law the state Assembly passed on Wednesday.

The sweeping bill, which now goes to the Senate, carries new standards defining whether workers are employees or independent contractors, upending how workers are treated in industries from trucking to the burgeoning gig economy.

“Big businesses shouldn’t be able to pass their costs onto taxpayers while depriving workers of the labor law protections they are rightfully entitled to.” — Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez

Under those standards, for example, workers could only be classified as independent contractors if they are free from the control or direction of an employer and they do work outside a company’s usual course of business.

The measure, Assembly Bill 5, includes exemptions for some sectors, such as physicians and insurance agents.

Democrats and major labor unions backing the bill contend it will protect workers’ rights.

“Big businesses shouldn’t be able to pass their costs onto taxpayers while depriving workers of the labor law protections they are rightfully entitled to,” said Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, a Democrat from San Diego who authored the bill.

Many industries have raised concerns, however, arguing that hiring independent contractors provides flexibility for companies as well as workers.

 

Bill a Work in Progress and Can Change

The ridesharing company Lyft issued a statement shortly after the bill passed, emphasizing its opposition and contending that the legislation would force many of its drivers to become employees.

“Lyft drivers overwhelmingly prefer the freedom of working where, when and how much they want,” the company said.

One sector after another has sought exemptions to the proposed law. The California News Publishers Association has sought an exemption to cover freelance journalists and newspaper carriers.

“Lyft drivers overwhelmingly prefer the freedom of working where, when and how much they want.” — Lyft statement

Companies are responsible for covering Social Security and Medicare taxes, unemployment insurance as well as workers compensation for employees.

Gonzalez said the bill is a work in progress and can change.

Still, Gonzalez said setting clear standards in law for labeling workers as independent contractors would give certainty to businesses following a California Supreme Court ruling last year on the issue.

California is home to many of the companies that gave rise to the gig economy. Silicon Valley is a political force in California’s capital but so, too, is labor.

The bill comes as companies like Uber and Lyft are facing mounting pressure. Drivers for the companies went on strike and staged protests in major cities earlier this month to draw attention to precarious working conditions as well as the financial pressures of gig work.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Trump Pulls Back 150 Guard Troops From Federal Duties in California

DON'T MISS

Trump Says Israel Has Agreed to Conditions to Finalize 60-Day Gaza Ceasefire

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Man Arrested for Suspected Arson Hours After Separate Wildfire

DON'T MISS

New California Environmental Rollbacks Could Boost Housing Projects in Fresno

DON'T MISS

Iran Made Preparations to Mine the Strait of Hormuz, US Sources Say

DON'T MISS

Fresno Unified’s Embattled Nikki Henry Exits. ‘I Own My Mistake. I Won’t Let It Own Me.’

DON'T MISS

Trump Floats Daughter-in-Law Lara Trump for Senate Run in North Carolina

DON'T MISS

Google Hit With $314 Million US Verdict in Cellular Data Class Action

DON'T MISS

Tulare County Wildfire Prompts Advisory in Three Rivers Area

DON'T MISS

O’Brien Launches Fresno County Schools Chief Campaign by Handing Out ‘Homework’

UP NEXT

California Republicans Send Message to Trump: Deport Criminals, Not Our Vital Workers

UP NEXT

CA Rolls Back Its Landmark Environmental Law to Speed Housing Construction

UP NEXT

California Seizes Over 600,000 Pounds of Illegal Fireworks. Newsom Calls for Safe Celebrations

UP NEXT

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

UP NEXT

Buying a Home With Solar? Beware of CA Bill Written by Former Utility Co. Exec

UP NEXT

Trump Administration Sues Los Angeles Over Immigration Enforcement

UP NEXT

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

UP NEXT

Immigration Raids Leave Crops Unharvested, California Farms at Risk

UP NEXT

CA’s Population Shrank in Trump’s First Immigration Crackdown. It Could Happen Again

UP NEXT

Controversial Climate Rule That Could Raise Gas Prices About to Take Effect

New California Environmental Rollbacks Could Boost Housing Projects in Fresno

4 hours ago

Iran Made Preparations to Mine the Strait of Hormuz, US Sources Say

4 hours ago

Fresno Unified’s Embattled Nikki Henry Exits. ‘I Own My Mistake. I Won’t Let It Own Me.’

4 hours ago

Trump Floats Daughter-in-Law Lara Trump for Senate Run in North Carolina

4 hours ago

Google Hit With $314 Million US Verdict in Cellular Data Class Action

5 hours ago

Tulare County Wildfire Prompts Advisory in Three Rivers Area

6 hours ago

O’Brien Launches Fresno County Schools Chief Campaign by Handing Out ‘Homework’

6 hours ago

Trump Says US Could Reach Trade Deal With India, Casts Doubt on Deal With Japan

6 hours ago

Jury Reaches Verdict on Some Counts at Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ Sex Trafficking Trial

6 hours ago

How Wimbledon Is Tackling Its Hottest Opening on Record

6 hours ago

Trump Pulls Back 150 Guard Troops From Federal Duties in California

LOS ANGELES — The Trump administration released about 150 National Guard troops on Tuesday in the first pullback since it dispatched a milit...

3 hours ago

3 hours ago

Trump Pulls Back 150 Guard Troops From Federal Duties in California

An Israeli military convoy manoeuvres near the Israel-Gaza border, as seen from Israel, July 1, 2025. (Reuters/Amir Cohen)
3 hours ago

Trump Says Israel Has Agreed to Conditions to Finalize 60-Day Gaza Ceasefire

Abel Joel Garcia Zarate, 39, of Biola, was arrested Sunday, June, 30, 2025, in Madera County on suspicion of starting a wildfire just hours after crews responded to a separate blaze sparked by farm equipment. (Madera County SO)
4 hours ago

Fresno County Man Arrested for Suspected Arson Hours After Separate Wildfire

4 hours ago

New California Environmental Rollbacks Could Boost Housing Projects in Fresno

An aerial view of the Iranian shores and the island of Qeshm in the strait of Hormuz, December 10, 2023. REUTERSStringerFile Photo
4 hours ago

Iran Made Preparations to Mine the Strait of Hormuz, US Sources Say

4 hours ago

Fresno Unified’s Embattled Nikki Henry Exits. ‘I Own My Mistake. I Won’t Let It Own Me.’

Lara Trump looks on during Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump's rally, at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., November 6, 2024. (Reuters File)
4 hours ago

Trump Floats Daughter-in-Law Lara Trump for Senate Run in North Carolina

A Google logo is seen at a company research facility in Mountain View, California, U.S., May 13, 2025. (Reuters File)
5 hours ago

Google Hit With $314 Million US Verdict in Cellular Data Class Action

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend