A pair of different ballot questions that could reshape the relationship between gig-economy drivers and tech giants like Uber, Lyft and DoorDash are poised to go before Massachusetts voters this fall after Thursday decisions from the state’s highest court.
The Supreme Judicial Court ruled that proposed ballot questions involving drivers’ employment rights and status comply with requirements set out in the state Constitution, rebuffing challenges that sought to block them from the Nov. 5 ballot.
A set of five different industry-backed questions seek to establish under Massachusetts law that gig-economy drivers for ride-hail and delivery platforms are independent contractors, not employees.
The campaign behind those proposals, Flexibility and Benefits for Massachusetts Drivers, opted to file multiple different versions this cycle after the SJC two years ago struck an earlier attempt at putting the driver-status question before voters.
Justice Gabrielle Wolohojian wrote in the ruling that the court could “revisit” the issue and “withdraw this opinion in the event the proponents seek to place more than one petition on the November ballot.”
The court’s action paves the way for an intense and expensive campaign to sway voters for and against the question, as labor unions and the tech companies square off.
Conor Yunits, spokesperson for the Flexibility and Benefits for Massachusetts Drivers committee, called the decision “a huge win and a great day for rideshare and delivery drivers.”
“We are thrilled for the tens of thousands of drivers who are part of this campaign and have fought for more than three years for this moment, and we look forward to celebrating a complete victory on Election Day,” Yunits said in a statement.
While proponents of the contractor question argue it would assure drivers maintain the flexibility they value, critics argue it would keep them from getting the benefits owed to employees.
The question of whether gig drivers are employees or contractors is also the subject of a pending state lawsuit, filed by Gov. Maura Healey when she was attorney general, that argues the companies deny drivers protections like a minimum wage by improperly classifying them as contractors.
Massachusetts AFL-CIO President Chrissy Lynch, who chairs the Massachusetts is Not For Sale opposition campaign, called the court’s decision on the ballot question an “unprecedented step back for the voters, workers, consumers, taxpayers and law-abiding businesses of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, which should not be for sale.”
“Time and again, Massachusetts voters and lawmakers have overwhelmingly supported stronger rights and protections, and leveled the playing field for law-abiding businesses,” Lynch said. “We will utilize all possible options to ensure the rights of workers, consumers, and communities.”
The SJC also cleared for the ballot a separate question that would allow ride-hail drivers to unionize. That question is backed by the Drivers Demand Justice Coalition, which includes labor unions the International Association of Machinists and Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union.
“After gathering signatures from thousands of voters across the Commonwealth, we know the public is eager to finally grant drivers the basic workplace rights and protections they so desperately need, especially now that the companies also qualified for the ballot with a question that would curtail those rights and protections,” said Roxana Rivera of 32BJ SEIU.
Paul Craney, spokesman for the Fiscal Alliance Foundation, was one of the plaintiffs who challenged that question.
“If this proposal passes in its current form, this question will not only eliminate the ability for many independent contractors to be their own boss, and raise prices for riders, but will also likely result in a lengthy legal battle for years to come due to the proposal’s poorly worded provision that preempts federal and state labor law,” Craney said.
Campaigns have until next Wednesday, July 3, to submit enough voter signatures to Secretary of State Bill Galvin to secure a spot on the ballot.
