Roundup: Articles From Around the Web
Here are some posts from around the web that I thought you may find interesting. Let me know if there is anything good I missed. Email me anything awesome that you find, or write, at Mark@milestomemories.com.
Articles
Lyft joins Uber in threatening to pull out of California over driver status – The Verge
Our own Ian Snyder is caught up with this law and can only write so many articles a year for us because of it. Hopefully it gets corrected or a lot of people are going to be out of work.
AMC Reopens Its Doors on August 20 with 15¢ Tickets – DDG
If you feel comfortable going to the movies then this is a pretty great offer. May be a little crowded opening day because of it so be aware of that.
Chase United TravelBank Visa To Become Chase United Gateway Visa On 9/21 – Doctor of Credit
This looks to be better for cardholders across the board.
Conclusion
Which article did you find most interesting? Remember to let me know of anything you come across that you want added into the next edition at Mark@milestomemories.com.
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I can live without Uber when I visit CA. But I miss Ian. 🙁
+1
Any idea if Uber or Lyft – or anybody else for that matter – has a practical alternative to the California law? I don’t think lawsuits trying to abrogate the law qualify as practical. Obviously, something has to be done to help the people left on their own. The question is what. I don’t have any ideas but surely someone who’s involved could suggest a workable plan.
I think plenty of people were just fine being independent contractors. Truck drivers, writers, ride share etc. I am an independent contractor at MtM and if Michigan passed a law where I could only write 35 articles a year I would be livid. I really don’t understand what they were thinking passing the law the way it currently is.
Why is hard to understand? There’s been a massive move over the past ~25 years to mislabel employees (people whose jobs relate to the day-to-day activities of a business) as “independent contractors” (which properly describes people who are doing a one-off job, like painting the office walls or giving a one-time presentation).
There have been schools calling their teachers “independent contractors” and symphonies calling their musicians same; there have been magazines calling their writers “contractors” and healthcare workers similarly miscategorized.
More broadly, there’s been a shift toward what is euphemistically called the “gig economy,” which is really just an attempt by employers to shift the costs of capital onto labor, to avoid paying benefits and insurance, to dodge liability, and to skimp on payroll taxes.
If you’re a taxi company, then it seems pretty clear that taxi-driving is an (THE) essential part of your business. I don’t really think there’s any argument Uber can make for why it shouldn’t have to treat its employees as employees except “We don’t feel like it.” CA wasn’t too impressed by that argument, and rightfully so.
The problem is that they wrapped people up in this law that are legit independent contractors and now lost their side work or are severely limited.
As a business owner I shouldn’t be but I’m very much with @Rose. There’s been some horrible abuse of what’s been termed “independent contractor” and whenever there’s been a change in status for individuals to independent contractor it has absolutely always been to the overall detriment of the work force to benefit the corporation. What I’m asking for is some sort of workable counter proposal but instead Uber is handing out lawsuits, which I find telling. For that matter, Uber et al had plenty of chances to try to push for reasonable changes in the legislation before it was passed but chose to try to derail things instead of finding ways to make it work. I’m asking for viable, constructive alternatives that materially improve things for independent contractors at a price that’s not crushing. I think that in *some* circumstances it’s valid to categorize someone as an independent contractor but not simply as a way to avoid cost. I’m new to this issue, but as an ignorant novice I might suggest having a company pay for your benefits in proportion to their part of your income in some way: if you get a quarter of your income from a company, they can pony up a quarter of your other work related costs. Since you’ve got a dog in this fight, what would you suggest that would notably improve the lot for workers while not being a heavy burden?