MA Ballot Measure Pushes for Gig Workers to Be Treated Like Contractors

Supporters of a Massachusetts ballot question that will ask voters to treat drivers for Uber, Lyft and other app-based companies as independent contractors have collected about 130,000 signatures, enough to get it on the ballot, according to a Reuters report Tuesday (Nov. 16).  

The signatures are now in the hands of town and city clerks, who will craft their own versions of the ballot question, which is supported by a group of app-based service providers. 

The Massachusetts Coalition for Independent Work includes Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and Instacart. In August, the group pushed to ask voters to declare their drivers as independent contractors — and not employees — entitled to minimum benefits.

Flexibility and Benefits for Massachusetts Drivers, a committee associated with the group, gathered the signatures on behalf of the coalition. The two versions of the ballot questions are similar, although one doesn’t include a safety training requirement. 

The deadline to submit signatures on 2022 ballot questions in Massachusetts is Wednesday (Nov. 17). Measures need at least 80,239 certified signatures and must be delivered to the secretary of state by Dec. 1. 

The coalition’s proposal would create an earnings floor equal to 120% of the Massachusetts minimum wage for app-based ride-share and delivery drivers, which would be $18 an hour in 2023 before tips. In addition, drivers would get at least 26 cents per mile for vehicle upkeep and gas. 

The companies for which they drive would have to pay healthcare stipends for drivers who work 15-plus hours a week. Drivers could also earn paid sick time and paid family and medical leave. 

In 2020, California voters backed a measure that confirmed ride hailing and food delivery workers’ status as independent contractors with some benefits, but a California judge ruled in August that it violated the state’s constitution. 

Related: Deep Dive: Why Paying Gig Workers More Quickly Is a Winning Proposition for the Businesses That Employ Them 

Data from 2020 reveals that 7% of employers that hire gig workers pay their wages daily. More than three in five (61%) of employers said their freelancer payments are handled via traditional payroll systems.