1 00:00:00,320 --> 00:00:04,000 Speaker 1: Bray and Bridge under drivers. Sorry, Uber drivers, it's five 2 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:07,040 Speaker 1: eighteen on news Talk ZBB. Have the same right as 3 00:00:07,040 --> 00:00:10,480 Speaker 1: any other company employee. This is a landmark Supreme Court 4 00:00:10,520 --> 00:00:14,160 Speaker 1: case unanimously throwing out Uber's appeal which aim to restrict 5 00:00:14,240 --> 00:00:18,439 Speaker 1: labor rights to their drivers as contractors. Workers First Union 6 00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:20,680 Speaker 1: will now progress with collective bargaining on behalf of the 7 00:00:20,760 --> 00:00:23,200 Speaker 1: drivers and need to Rose and traders with US Workers' 8 00:00:23,239 --> 00:00:27,600 Speaker 1: First Union Deputy Secretary Anita Good evening, Hi, Ryan, So 9 00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:29,520 Speaker 1: what rights do they now have? 10 00:00:30,920 --> 00:00:33,280 Speaker 2: So they have the same rights that any other employee 11 00:00:33,320 --> 00:00:36,120 Speaker 2: has in New Zealand? I mean the big ones that 12 00:00:36,240 --> 00:00:39,280 Speaker 2: you know, most people would think of a minimum wage, 13 00:00:39,440 --> 00:00:42,239 Speaker 2: annual leave, you know, other types of leaves, sickly, can 14 00:00:42,280 --> 00:00:45,680 Speaker 2: we save the contributions. A big one for Uber drivers 15 00:00:45,680 --> 00:00:50,400 Speaker 2: is they now have rights around you know, job protection. 16 00:00:50,600 --> 00:00:53,360 Speaker 2: So Uber shouldn't be able to just dismiss them at 17 00:00:53,360 --> 00:00:56,040 Speaker 2: the drop of the hat without going through any due process. 18 00:00:56,560 --> 00:00:58,240 Speaker 2: So that's a really important one for them. 19 00:00:58,760 --> 00:01:01,920 Speaker 1: So for these four employees, he's obviously significant ruling. But 20 00:01:02,000 --> 00:01:03,880 Speaker 1: what about you've got about a thousand members who are 21 00:01:03,960 --> 00:01:05,200 Speaker 1: driving ubers? Have they got that right? 22 00:01:06,400 --> 00:01:07,120 Speaker 2: Yeah? That's right? 23 00:01:07,280 --> 00:01:10,319 Speaker 1: So what about them what happens now to their situation. 24 00:01:11,680 --> 00:01:15,600 Speaker 2: So we've already lodged with the Employment Relations Authority claims 25 00:01:15,640 --> 00:01:17,760 Speaker 2: on behalf of all of our current members, and we'll 26 00:01:18,040 --> 00:01:22,840 Speaker 2: continue to lodge as new drivers join, basically saying that 27 00:01:22,920 --> 00:01:26,040 Speaker 2: we think the company owes the money for everything that 28 00:01:26,319 --> 00:01:28,960 Speaker 2: they should have received already if the company was properly 29 00:01:29,400 --> 00:01:33,120 Speaker 2: recognizing them as employees the whole way along. So the 30 00:01:33,160 --> 00:01:36,360 Speaker 2: Authority has been waiting for the Supreme Court's decision before 31 00:01:36,400 --> 00:01:39,039 Speaker 2: they started any work on these claims. But now that 32 00:01:39,080 --> 00:01:41,880 Speaker 2: we've got that, they'll launch into a process to calculate 33 00:01:41,959 --> 00:01:44,319 Speaker 2: exactly what it is that Uber owes those people. So 34 00:01:44,400 --> 00:01:46,280 Speaker 2: that's a really important process we'll go through. And then 35 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:50,240 Speaker 2: obviously we're also looking to collective fleet bargain with and 36 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:53,360 Speaker 2: this is really the future focused part of it. We 37 00:01:53,400 --> 00:01:56,360 Speaker 2: sort of like look back and think, Okay, you know 38 00:01:56,440 --> 00:01:59,840 Speaker 2: they're owed a certain amount of money, let's fix that up. 39 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:02,880 Speaker 2: But what about the system going forwards? Clearly it's not 40 00:02:02,920 --> 00:02:06,160 Speaker 2: been working for people go through the collective bargaining process. 41 00:02:06,160 --> 00:02:08,400 Speaker 2: We really want to improve the erber system for all 42 00:02:08,480 --> 00:02:09,920 Speaker 2: drivers in New Zealand and need. 43 00:02:09,880 --> 00:02:12,799 Speaker 1: To How much are we talking here? Total for these 44 00:02:12,880 --> 00:02:16,600 Speaker 1: workers hundreds of millions potentially, I mean potentially. 45 00:02:16,639 --> 00:02:18,560 Speaker 2: It's really hard to say at this point because it's 46 00:02:18,560 --> 00:02:22,000 Speaker 2: totally contingent on how much driving they've done. So the 47 00:02:22,000 --> 00:02:25,240 Speaker 2: more driving a driver has done, the longer they've been 48 00:02:25,280 --> 00:02:27,600 Speaker 2: engaged with Uber, the more likely they are to the 49 00:02:27,639 --> 00:02:30,639 Speaker 2: old and more significant amount of money. And then lack 50 00:02:30,680 --> 00:02:33,560 Speaker 2: wives with drivers who've only just started or who drives 51 00:02:33,720 --> 00:02:36,080 Speaker 2: part time, they're going to be owed less. But yes, 52 00:02:36,080 --> 00:02:39,040 Speaker 2: we're looking at a very very large bills Ober. 53 00:02:39,280 --> 00:02:42,080 Speaker 1: What happens if you are an Uber driver and you 54 00:02:42,120 --> 00:02:43,639 Speaker 1: want to take it, you don't want to work today? 55 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:45,680 Speaker 1: Does that mean, you know, can you just do you 56 00:02:45,680 --> 00:02:48,520 Speaker 1: have apply for leave if you're if you're an employee, 57 00:02:48,520 --> 00:02:49,320 Speaker 1: you'd have to, right. 58 00:02:50,440 --> 00:02:52,400 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean at the moment, you don't have to 59 00:02:52,440 --> 00:02:55,160 Speaker 2: do that if you're driving for Uber. But what we've 60 00:02:55,160 --> 00:02:57,920 Speaker 2: found is that the reality is is that if you 61 00:02:57,960 --> 00:03:00,560 Speaker 2: want to make any money at all driving for Uber, 62 00:03:00,800 --> 00:03:02,360 Speaker 2: and what you tend to do is you fall in 63 00:03:02,400 --> 00:03:05,040 Speaker 2: line and drive the hours that they want you to drive. 64 00:03:05,160 --> 00:03:08,680 Speaker 2: So it's no coincidence that most drivers who do it 65 00:03:08,720 --> 00:03:11,560 Speaker 2: full time end up working like, for example, Friday night, 66 00:03:12,040 --> 00:03:14,520 Speaker 2: Saturday night and rush hour. 67 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:18,239 Speaker 1: But that's when people want to drive the hours. 68 00:03:17,320 --> 00:03:19,440 Speaker 2: Those aren't the hours, Dy, but those aren't the hours 69 00:03:19,440 --> 00:03:20,880 Speaker 2: that they want to work. 70 00:03:21,000 --> 00:03:23,760 Speaker 1: If you don't drive an Uber, I'm sorry, I need 71 00:03:23,800 --> 00:03:25,840 Speaker 1: to don't drive an Uber. Those are the hours people 72 00:03:25,880 --> 00:03:26,600 Speaker 1: want the cars. 73 00:03:29,440 --> 00:03:31,519 Speaker 2: I mean the thing I'm not saying nobody should be 74 00:03:31,600 --> 00:03:34,400 Speaker 2: driving those hours. And absolutely that's when the work is, 75 00:03:34,480 --> 00:03:36,120 Speaker 2: that's when the work needs to be done. That's when 76 00:03:36,120 --> 00:03:38,560 Speaker 2: people need to drive. But there's nothing to say that 77 00:03:38,560 --> 00:03:41,640 Speaker 2: people shouldn't be earning minimum wage to do that work, right, 78 00:03:41,800 --> 00:03:44,400 Speaker 2: that's it's just not right that the right thing to 79 00:03:44,440 --> 00:03:47,320 Speaker 2: do a crap ton of money in our country. 80 00:03:47,400 --> 00:03:49,520 Speaker 1: They can surely get There is no doubt about drivers, 81 00:03:49,520 --> 00:03:51,760 Speaker 1: there's no doubt about that. But what's your message to 82 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:54,840 Speaker 1: people who use Uber? Because there this will put their 83 00:03:54,880 --> 00:03:55,520 Speaker 1: prices up? 84 00:03:55,600 --> 00:04:00,280 Speaker 2: Right, well, not necessarily, because Uber has been off rading 85 00:04:00,320 --> 00:04:02,440 Speaker 2: this model all over the world and there's been a 86 00:04:02,480 --> 00:04:05,360 Speaker 2: whole bunch of different, you know, attacks on it and 87 00:04:05,480 --> 00:04:08,760 Speaker 2: approaches to it, and they have threatened that everywhere they've gone, 88 00:04:08,760 --> 00:04:11,520 Speaker 2: as said, you know, any kind of challenge to our 89 00:04:11,520 --> 00:04:13,839 Speaker 2: business model will put prices up and we might pull 90 00:04:13,840 --> 00:04:15,600 Speaker 2: out of the country. And so on and so forth, 91 00:04:15,600 --> 00:04:19,120 Speaker 2: but more often than we've actually just seen them continue 92 00:04:19,120 --> 00:04:22,160 Speaker 2: to operate the way that they've always operated. So and 93 00:04:22,240 --> 00:04:24,080 Speaker 2: like we said, there's a whole heap of money going 94 00:04:24,120 --> 00:04:26,560 Speaker 2: to this company at the moment. At the moment, it's 95 00:04:26,560 --> 00:04:28,800 Speaker 2: about priorities, right. They can choose to put the money 96 00:04:28,800 --> 00:04:30,440 Speaker 2: where it should be going, which is in the pockets 97 00:04:30,480 --> 00:04:32,800 Speaker 2: of their drivers and people who are actually bringing the 98 00:04:32,839 --> 00:04:34,120 Speaker 2: money in with their services. 99 00:04:34,320 --> 00:04:36,800 Speaker 1: Nita, appreciate your time. Anita Rose and Traded with us 100 00:04:36,839 --> 00:04:40,679 Speaker 1: from First Union. For more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drive, 101 00:04:40,839 --> 00:04:44,280 Speaker 1: listen live to news Talks. It'd be from four pm weekdays, 102 00:04:44,360 --> 00:04:46,560 Speaker 1: or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.