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What I’ve Been Reading This Week

Some of the biggest news over the past week was a decision from a court of appeals in California that enables Uber & Lyft to have additional time to reclassify their drivers as employees rather than independent contractors.  Readers will likely recall a prior order in the case in which Uber & Lyft were given 10 days to comply with the requirement that the drivers be reclassified.  As noted below, this matter is far from over.  However, for the time being, Uber & Lyft have won a reprieve.

As always, below are a couple articles that caught my eye this week.


Hostile Work Environment or Just Workplace Bullying?

Eric Bachman wrote an article earlier this month for Forbes in which he differentiated between a valid hostile work environment claim and “only” workplace bullying.  As Eric writes, Title VII is relatively straightforward in terms of what is required to establish a hostile work environment claim, namely that the key is that the abusive conduct must be related to an employee’s race, sex, or religion.  Going one step further, Eric provides a few defenses that employers can use when confronted with a hostile work environment claim, including employer taking steps to reasonably prevent and promptly correct the complained of behavior.


Uber & Lyft Win Reprieve From Court of Appeals in Regard to California Driver Classification

Yesterday, a court of appeals in California has extended the time in which Uber & Lyft would have to comply with an order that would require the companies to reclassify their drivers as employees rather than contractors.  Prior to the court of appeals issuing its ruling, Lyft had indicated that it would likely shut down operations in the state as it would not have enough time to comply with the order.  (Uber had not announced any plans, before the court of appeals issued its ruling.  However, it was expected it would follow Lyft’s lead and also shut down operations in the state.)  While Assembly Bill 5 remains in effect (and the decision from the court of appeals does not foreclose the issue), Uber & Lyft can breathe a sigh of relief.

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