The fight over AB5
Images: Kimberly Sulsar-Campos/David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty
Independent trucker protests against AB5 – California’s “gig-worker” law, not a newly discovered planet or galaxy – are set to resume at the Port of Oakland later today, after demonstrators effectively shut down the third-busiest seaport on the West Coast for all of last week.
🚛 More deets… Since last Monday, hundreds of protestors have prevented dockworkers from reaching their posts for loading and unloading ships. They’ve also stopped trucks from carrying cargo in or out of the port, which handles more than $40 billion worth of goods each year.
Driving the protests (😉) is a state law called AB5, which requires companies hiring independent contractors to reclassify them as employees, with some exceptions.
- AB5 was originally passed in 2019. But in 2020, nearly 60% of California voters passed a referendum exempting app-based gig companies like Lyft, Uber, and DoorDash from having to classify their drivers as employees.
- Court challenges have meant the original law only came into effect recently for the ~70,000 independent owner-operator truckers located in California.
💬 What they’re saying: Supporters of AB5 say it’s designed to prevent companies from misclassifying their employees as independent contractors, a position typically receiving lower pay and fewer (or no) benefits.
- Independent truck drivers opposing the law say it forces them to either give up their independence or spend thousands of dollars on permits, insurance, and equipment rentals.
👀 Looking ahead… CA Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) said on Thursday that he won’t give in to truckers’ demands to pause implementation of AB5, while the protesters have given no indication they’ll stop blockading the Port of Oakland anytime soon.
+Flash poll: Do you think California’s gig-worker law (AB5) is a good idea?
See a 360° view of what the media is saying →
Sprinkles in favor of California’s AB5 law
- Some commentators argue that the myth of “entrepreneurial opportunity” inherent to gig work has allowed state legislatures to undo basic work protections for many service sectors, especially those occupied primarily by immigrants and racial minorities.
- Others contend that gig companies take advantage of their workers by eliminating benefits like health care and unemployment, which usually come with contracted employment.
- “The False Promise of ‘Third-Category’ Worker Laws” –Veena Dubal, The Regulatory Review
- “Capitalisn’t: The Gig Economy Isn’t What You Think It Is” –Chicago Booth Review
- “The Deception Of The Gig Economy” –Nereah Obimbo, Potentash
Sprinkles against California’s AB5 law
- Some commentators argue that California’s AB5 law is poorly designed, and only serves to help unions at the expense of everyday workers the bill is ostensibly intended to protect
- Others contend that the law will disrupt America’s supply chains even further at a time when issues are already plaguing the nation, and could have an outsized impact on the tens of millions of Americans across the country who receive goods shipped through California.
- “California Democrats' war on gig workers could become an economic tragedy for everyone” –Washington Examiner Editorial Board
- “Truckers Protest California's AB5, Continue to Block Port of Oakland” –Dominic Pino, National Review
- “Time for a Law That Puts Workers, Not Unions, First” –Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC)
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