LONDON — Uber’s troubles within the U.Okay. aren’t over, regardless of winning back its license to operate London.

The ride-hailing agency is awaiting a significant ruling from the nation’s prime court docket on whether or not its drivers needs to be categorized as staff fairly than unbiased contractors.

It is a case that echoes Uber’s fight with Californian regulators over the employment rights of its drivers final 12 months. A loss for the agency might jeopardize its enterprise mannequin and have broader ramifications for the so-called gig economic system.

Here is what you want to know.

It began with a U.Okay. employment tribunal ruling in 2016.

The tribunal ruled in favor of a group of Uber drivers, led by Yaseen Aslam and James Farrar, who claimed they had been staff employed by Uber and subsequently entitled to rights such at the least wage, vacation pay and relaxation breaks.

Uber insists that its drivers are self-employed, a classification which grants them minimal protections. It would not need them to be handled as staff as this would cut back the versatile working association its service has turn out to be identified for and end in larger prices for the agency.

The corporate lost each appeal in opposition to the unique employment tribunal resolution in Britain’s decrease courts, and so it has appealed to the Supreme Court as a ultimate resort.

Uber says it is improved over time with respect to the therapy of its drivers, introducing advantages like insurance coverage to cowl sickness or harm and maternity and paternity funds. However attorneys representing the drivers say the agency has an employer-employee relationship with drivers and will subsequently pay them a minimal wage.

Uber is not the one ride-hailing platform to take challenge with reclassifying its drivers as staff. Free Now, a taxi app joint-owned by Daimler and BMW, mentioned most of its drivers use a number of providers and “benefit from the flexibility that comes with this.”

“This by its very nature would make it very difficult and never essentially useful to them to alter their standing from contractors to staff or staff,” a spokesperson for Free Now instructed CNBC.

The Supreme Court docket will make its verdict on Friday at round 9:45 a.m. London time. The judgment will likely be broadcast live on the court docket’s web site.

Friday’s ruling might have large long-term penalties for Uber and the U.Okay.’s gig economic system, which has an estimated workforce of 5.5 million folks.

For Uber, a loss would imply the agency must return to the U.Okay. employment tribunal to find out compensation for drivers.

What’s going to matter within the Supreme Court docket’s ruling just isn’t solely whether or not drivers needs to be classed as staff, however during which eventualities they’re working. As an example, is a driver working as quickly as they open their app, or solely after they choose up their passengers? That is what the judges are debating.

Pinar Ozcan, professor of entrepreneurship and innovation at Oxford College’s Saïd Enterprise College, instructed CNBC final 12 months that the case was an instance of “one other showdown of the facility battle between platforms and their members.”

The world has modified since Uber initially misplaced its employment tribunal case. The coronavirus pandemic has taken its toll on ride-hailing drivers and demand has fallen amid the continuing world well being disaster. In the meantime, couriers for Uber Eats and different takeout apps are at this time considered by many as important staff, delivering meals to folks staying at residence.

The pandemic has led to an “acceleration of gig work,” based on Ozcan, with folks dropping their jobs because of lockdown measures.

“I believe we’ll see extra folks questioning how we should always redefine the phrases of gig work and make it such that it stays enticing for (platforms’) members,” she mentioned.

“After all, the platforms are going to struggle again as a result of it actually cuts into their income,” Ozcan mentioned. “That energy battle goes to, if something, enhance as a result of extra persons are going to be drawn to gig work.”

Uber final 12 months won a battle with the state of California, which had launched new laws in an try and classify app-based taxi drivers as staff. However voters supported a poll measure known as Proposition 22, which allowed firms like Uber and Lyft to proceed treating them like unbiased contractors.

Uber is touting a “third way” for the employment standing of gig staff, which might supply drivers some protections however nonetheless guarantee versatile working.

The agency shared proposals for such a model with the EU on Monday, forward of a assessment from the European Fee into gig economic system platforms. One measure Uber has advised is the concept of advantages funds which could possibly be utilized by staff for issues like medical insurance and paid day off.