“The self-employed do not enjoy any significant statutory employment rights; workers are entitled to certain rights, such as to be paid the national minimum wage, holiday pay, pension contributions, right to claim sick pay and in some cases rights under the Transfer of Undertakings Regulations.”
“There are three distinct categories of working individuals in the UK. These are the self-employed, workers and employees. Employees have additional rights on top of those of workers such as maternity or paternity pay, shared parental leave, statutory notice on dismissal, redundancy payments and the right not to be unfairly dismissed after two years of continuous service.”
In the Uber case, the court has decided that drivers can be considered workers. The success of the case against Uber will not only impact the way in which the taxi service provider operates but also change the day-to-day running of other similar businesses, such as couriering and black-cabs. The drivers have been deemed to be workers of the business and not self-employed, so they are entitled to receive the national minimum wage. Uber will be liable for any difference in pay if there has been a shortfall in the wages so far.
Any workers aged 25 or over are entitled to receive the National Living Wage and again, if there has been a shortfall in pay, the drivers will be entitled to re-claim the backdated payments they should have received in the two years prior to the ruling. Uber is liable for tens of thousands of other drivers whom could also make similar cash claims as the claimants in this case. The floodgates could also open for claims against other businesses in similar industries. “The serious, financial, implications of this case reinforce the importance for all employers to ensure their workforce is correctly classified.”
