Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2020/11/03/california-voters-approve-prop-22-exempting-gig-workers-from-labor-law.html
…
2 Likes
Well, fuck.
39 Likes
Beat me to it.
7 Likes
Seriously? God dammit you guys.
12 Likes
The companies have warned they’d likely have to pass on increased costs of worker reclassification to consumers.
If your business plan doesn’t work unless you pay your employees shit wages and no benefits, then your business sucks.
52 Likes
Meanwhile in Italy Uber eats is investigated by illegal recruiting charges and tax fraud. If you are profitable because you aren’t paying taxes and stealing tips, probably your business model is toast. And note that these gig workers aren’t in Italy considered employees, because in that case the contract for express couriers kicks in.
23 Likes
So what do you call companies with a business plan that doesn’t work even when they pay shit wages and no benefits?
10 Likes
Capitalism
26 Likes
The ads out here have been super deceptive.
If you went by the (paid actors) featured in TV and radio ads (which have been bombarding us), you’d think that every driver doesn’t want to be an employee, and that the prop guarantees full medical etc… benefits.
14 Likes
And they’ve been playing in front of every single youtube video I’ve watched for the last month. Sometimes multiple yes-on-22 ads on the same video.
What we have learned from this is that, if you have enough money, you can literally just rewrite the law in your favor (such that it is effectively impossible to amend or repeal, to boot.)
16 Likes
Right. Pass the costs on to consumers which is exactly what all of the non-“disruptive” transportation businesses with drivers earning a living wage (health coverage included) had been doing before.
8 Likes
This election is so 2020.
6 Likes
15 and 21 failed as well. They’re probably the most important other propositions on the ballot. 15 would have allowed property taxes on commercial property to rise in line with the current value of the property rather than being arbitrarily fixed at the level they were when the property was purchased, and 21 would have allowed rent controls.
7 Likes
My theory is that people are frightened about their livelihoods (a realistic fear brought on by unrestrained capitalism), but feel that more capitalism is the only solution.
3 Likes
In particular, if it’s to the extent where it’s “better” to spend $200m on keeping the status quo… Money that could have been spent on wages/benefits.
4 Likes
Either most people don’t read voter guides and just depend on deceptive TV ads or they really want to screw themselves over (because this gig economy exception will come for everyone). Either way, a depressing result.
It was also seen as a partial corrective to Proposition 13, which has starved California K-12 schools of funding for more than 40 years.
12 Likes
And that is why any form of paid advertisement needs to become illegal.
4 Likes
more than $200m spent by Uber and other other firms
They can’t make a profit, but can spend $200 million on propaganda.
What’s wrong with this picture?
13 Likes
The companies have countered that the logistics of such a model would be untenable since it would be too difficult to track time worked.
Sez the tracking app based companies.
9 Likes
The Aristocrats!
1 Like
