Vested Interest February 2021

News & Notes
Battle Over Rideshare Worker Classification Continues: New York Supreme Court Holds Uber Drivers Are Employees, Entitled to Unemployment Insurance
The New York Supreme Court has “found Uber to be liable for unemployment insurance contributions with respect to drivers at issue.” In Matter of Lowry, no. 530395, the Court held that facts existed to establish that “Uber controls the drivers’ access to their customers, calculates and collects the fares and sets the drivers’ rate of compensation […] provides a navigation system, tracks the drivers’ location on the app throughout the trip […] controls the vehicles [and] precludes certain driver behavior.” This case only applies to upstate New York, not New York City. (The National Law Review – 1/8/21)

Wealthy hospitals using lien laws to increase revenue
Numerous wealthy hospitals “have quietly used century-old hospital lien laws to increase revenue, often at the expense of low-income people…” [read more]