Latest / Early Edition with Ryan Bridge / Nureddin Abdurahman: Wellington Uber Driver on the Supreme Court ruling that four drivers are employees, not contractors

Transcript

Nureddin Abdurahman: Wellington Uber Driver on the Supreme Court ruling that four drivers are employees, not contractors · Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Uber has run out of road when it comes to
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: appealing their driver's rights. A group of four drivers has
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: taken their dispute with the global company to the Supreme
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: Court and one the court recognized that drivers are employees
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: and should be given the same rights, and that potentially
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: means things like guaranteed minimum wage, sick leave and annual leave.
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: Two it was a five mil decision. Nurdadina abdur Ahmen
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: is a driver who took Uber to court and is
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: also the Wellington City councilor and joins me now Nurdaden,
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: good morning to you.
• 0:27
  Speaker 2: Good morning Andrew.
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: It's been a long four year fight for you through
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: three courts and in every court it's been in your favor.
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: This must be a very satisfying result.
• 0:38
  Speaker 2: Yes, it's a very long fight, but I'm very pleased.
• 0:41
  Speaker 2: And yeah, I'm beyond proud of all the three other
• 0:46
  Speaker 2: drivers and hit a union and first union for the
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: hard walk.
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: So what's your read on the final reading? What will
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: it mean?
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: Well, it means basically drivers are like any either employees.
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: They will have equal rights and they were they were
• 1:04
  Speaker 2: to have human rights. And the fight was about employment
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: right as much as it was a human right.
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: But what are the ramifications? I mean, will Uber prices
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: suddenly skyrocket? What is the meaning for the wider gig
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: economy which has a reason for existing?
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: Well, I don't. I don't believe so. I think Uber
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: and the last year they make about four hundred million
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: dollars and then how much they paid in tax I
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: think those are the kind of things they need to
• 1:30
  Speaker 2: do openly with the community. And it's not going to
• 1:35
  Speaker 2: be much increase for for the for those who use Uber.
• 1:39
  Speaker 2: I think it's about fairness.
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: Will will Will this have an international impact on the
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: gig economy model?
• 1:48
  Speaker 2: Well, I think it should and it will. What it
• 1:51
  Speaker 2: means it's in a positive way. And look, drivers are
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: in this case, they're saying they know what is good
• 1:59
  Speaker 2: for them, and it's Steed of Uber telling them why
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: it's good for drivers. And the drivers they say they
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: want to have sickly I they want to have a
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: minimum wage, and they want to have most importantly a
• 2:11
  Speaker 2: decent way of dealing when they get dismissed for reasons
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: they believe it's not the right one. And I think
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: this is a very simple question to ask.
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: Well, many have said, if you want these better benefits,
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: these better wages, and you want to drive a taxi,
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: then dry dry, you know, join a taxi company. What
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: do you say to that.
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: Well, I think I myself used to drive taxi before
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: I joined Uber. But it's the whole system was changed
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: when Uber joined the business, and the business model has
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: changed since then in a big way, and no one
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: wants to be driving Uber until driving Uber becomes like
• 2:52
  Speaker 2: kind of the only way to survive. And if you
• 2:57
  Speaker 2: ask me, I wouldn't be driving Uba. I would have
• 2:58
  Speaker 2: just still got an opportuity to do better than taxi.
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: Yes, but I've heard there's currently too many drivers, not
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: enough rides, so there's more than enough people who still
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: want to work under the Uber model.
• 3:11
  Speaker 2: Well, look the system we currently have. There are so
• 3:15
  Speaker 2: many drivers who there are so many people who are
• 3:19
  Speaker 2: looking for work and they need a job. And then
• 3:22
  Speaker 2: Uber is using the human resource that we have to
• 3:27
  Speaker 2: exploit for their own benefit. And that is why we
• 3:30
  Speaker 2: need a loan in this country. The load that just
• 3:33
  Speaker 2: says no, it doesn't matter how many people are out
• 3:35
  Speaker 2: there looking for a job. They deserve rights like everyone else.
• 3:40
  Speaker 2: And that is why the Supreme Court agree with the
• 3:43
  Speaker 2: drivers in the skis.
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: Well, Congratulations New Adena, and thank you so much for
• 3:47
  Speaker 1: joining us. New aDNA Abdulla Ahman, the Uber driver who
• 3:50
  Speaker 1: took Uber to court. For more from Early Edition with
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: Ryan Bridge. Listen live to News Talks it Be from
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: five am weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeart Ready
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: oh M