Vancouver Star – Uber Class Action at Supreme Court & Workers’ Rights

Supreme Court hearing could help or hurt Workers’ Rights in Canada

In November, Samfiru Tumarkin LLP’s class action lawsuit against Uber Technologies Inc. heads to the Supreme Court of Canada in November.

The Vancouver Star’s Alex McKeen wrote that if the country’s highest court rules in favour of Uber, Pandora’s box may be opened, providing employers across Canada a way to dodge lawsuits from their employees.

Employment lawyer Lior Samfiru spoke to McKeen about the firm’s proposed class action which argues that Uber’s drivers are employees rather than independent contractors. He explained how correct classification of Uber drivers would grant them protections where overtime, minimum wage and vacation pay are concerned.

In order for the class action to begin, Samfiru explained that the Supreme Court must first allow it to proceed. Uber argues that because their drivers sign employment contracts that state that all parties mutually agree to hash out employment disputes through arbitration in the Netherlands, they should not have to endure a lawsuit in Ontario.

“The reason we have employment laws is that government decided there’s an imbalance of power between employers and employees,” Samfiru said during an interview from the firm’s Vancouver employment law office. “If we lose, we don’t have employment laws in Canada.”

Read the entire article from the Vancouver Star here.