The Supreme Court’s ruling on Uber sets an important precedent

Editorial: The balance of duties and responsibilities between the company and its workers has been reset in line with the law and the intentions of parliament

The Supreme Court has accorded Uber drivers the legal status of ‘workers’ (AP)

Uber has run out of road in its attempt to restrict its drivers’ employment. The Supreme Court has accorded Uber drivers the legal status of “workers”. In legal usage, as opposed to colloquially, this is a sort of hybrid between being classified as an “employee” and fully “self-employed”, and such workers can be found throughout the “gig economy”.

There are no more appeals, and the judgment stands as a landmark one. It sets an important precedent and will no doubt provoke a wave of claims for compensation from Uber drivers and others in analogous positions, where an organisation exerts more control over their working lives than it lets on.

One estimate is an average payout of £12,000 to Uber workers deprived of their holiday pay or left earning less than the minimum wage. The significance of the case can hardly be overstated.