United States of America: Issued Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruling in Postmates and Uber case challenging constitutionality of Assembly Bill 5

On 10 June 2024, the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued its ruling regarding the constitutionality of California Assembly Bill 5. Uber and Postmates, which is owned by Uber, challenged the constitutionality of Assembly Bill 5, alleging that it violates the Equal Protection Clauses of both the US and California Constitutions. They argued that the law unfairly targets app-based rideshare and delivery companies by imposing an employment classification that differs from the tests applied to other gig companies, thus exempting certain other industries. The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit acknowledged the state’s interest in addressing worker misclassification within the transportation and delivery sectors and upheld the distinctions made by Assembly Bill 5, stating that there are "plausible reasons" for treating companies such as Uber differently from other types of companies that use gig workers.