Lyft is paying $272.5M to settle lawsuit over how it classified drivers
Lyft is paying $272.5M to settle lawsuit over how it classified drivers
Lyft 支付 2.725 亿美元和解关于司机分类方式的诉讼
Lyft has agreed to pay $272.5 million to settle a lawsuit accusing the ride-hailing company of violating California law by misclassifying drivers as independent contractors, instead of employees. The company said in a regulatory filing that it believes the settlement will allow it to avoid the “costs and distraction of protracted litigation and enable management to maintain its focus on executing its business objectives.”
Lyft 已同意支付 2.725 亿美元，以和解一桩指控其违反加州法律的诉讼。该诉讼指控这家网约车公司将司机错误地归类为独立承包商，而非雇员。该公司在一份监管文件中表示，相信此次和解将使其能够避免“长期诉讼带来的成本和干扰，并使管理层能够继续专注于执行其业务目标。”
The settlement stems from a lawsuit filed by the California Labor Commissioner’s Office in August 2020 that accused Lyft of treating drivers as independent contractors rather than as employees, as required under state law at the time. The lawsuit alleged that drivers were denied minimum wage and overtime, as well as other benefits and protections provided to employees, including paid sick leave and timely wage payments.
此次和解源于加州劳工专员办公室（LCO）于 2020 年 8 月提起的一项诉讼，该诉讼指控 Lyft 未能按照当时州法律的要求，将司机视为雇员，而是将其视为独立承包商。诉讼称，司机被剥夺了最低工资、加班费以及雇员应享有的其他福利和保障，包括带薪病假和及时发放工资。
“This settlement is about the workers who came forward and spoke up. Their voices made this outcome possible,” California Labor Commissioner Lilia García-Brower said in a statement, adding that the LCO will forgo its share of the settlement and direct those funds to drivers who filed wage claims.
“这项和解是为那些挺身而出、勇敢发声的劳动者争取来的。是他们的声音促成了这一结果，”加州劳工专员莉莉娅·加西亚-布劳尔（Lilia García-Brower）在一份声明中表示。她补充说，LCO 将放弃其在和解金中的份额，并将这些资金直接发放给提出工资索赔的司机。
The settlement, which still must be approved by a judge, covers alleged violations from April 6, 2016, to December 15, 2020 — a period California was grappling with whether workers in the booming gig economy were independent contractors or employees. Today, drivers for app-based transportation services like Lyft and Uber are classified as contractors after voters passed ballot measure Proposition 22 in 2020.
该和解协议仍需法官批准，涵盖了 2016 年 4 月 6 日至 2020 年 12 月 15 日期间的违规指控——当时加州正处于关于蓬勃发展的零工经济从业者究竟是独立承包商还是雇员的争议之中。如今，随着选民在 2020 年通过了第 22 号提案（Proposition 22），像 Lyft 和 Uber 这样的应用程序交通服务司机已被归类为承包商。
The ballot measure provided a carve-out from Assembly Bill 5, a state law passed in 2019 that required companies like DoorDash, Lyft, and Uber to classify gig workers as employees, entitling them to minimum wage, workers’ compensation, and other benefits. Even after AB 5 took effect, Lyft, Uber, and other companies that relied on gig workers continued to classify their drivers as contractors.
该投票提案为 2019 年通过的州法律《第 5 号议会法案》（AB 5）提供了一个例外条款。AB 5 要求 DoorDash、Lyft 和 Uber 等公司将零工人员归类为雇员，使其有权获得最低工资、工伤赔偿和其他福利。即便在 AB 5 生效后，Lyft、Uber 以及其他依赖零工人员的公司仍继续将司机归类为承包商。
That eventually led to legal action from the LCO, California Attorney General, and the City Attorneys of Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco, as well as private actions filed under California’s Private Attorneys General Act. The cases were coordinated in San Francisco Superior Court in September 2021.
这最终导致了 LCO、加州总检察长以及洛杉矶、圣地亚哥和旧金山市检察官采取法律行动，同时也引发了根据加州《私人总检察长法案》（PAGA）提起的私人诉讼。这些案件于 2021 年 9 月在旧金山高等法院进行了合并审理。
“If approved, this settlement closes a chapter from a very different time, before Prop 22,” a Lyft spokesperson said in an emailed company statement. “The vast majority of rideshare drivers in California have always wanted to be independent contractors, and voters affirmed that when they passed Prop 22 in 2020, giving drivers new benefits and protections while preserving their flexibility. And since then, Lyft has gone further than Prop 22 requires, becoming the only rideshare company with a fee cap.”
“如果获得批准，这项和解将结束一个非常不同时期的篇章，即第 22 号提案通过之前的时期，”Lyft 发言人在一份电子邮件声明中表示。“加州绝大多数网约车司机一直希望成为独立承包商，选民在 2020 年通过第 22 号提案时也肯定了这一点，该提案在保留司机灵活性的同时，为他们提供了新的福利和保护。自那时起，Lyft 的做法甚至超出了第 22 号提案的要求，成为唯一一家设有费用上限的网约车公司。”
“Lyft believes drivers have always been properly classified under the law, and we’re glad to put this case behind us. We remain laser focused on helping create more earnings for drivers and more affordable rides for riders.”
“Lyft 认为，根据法律规定，司机一直被正确地归类，我们很高兴能将此案抛在脑后。我们将继续专注于帮助司机创造更多收入，并为乘客提供更实惠的乘车服务。”
The settlement closes this legal chapter, at least for Lyft. Uber still faces an LCO lawsuit that makes similar allegations.
对于 Lyft 而言，此次和解至少结束了这一法律篇章。Uber 目前仍面临 LCO 的诉讼，其中包含类似的指控。