California bill could force Uber and Lyft to reclassify drivers as employees
&lt;unpopular opinion&gt;<p>I worry that this bill will ultimately eliminate a unique niche in the job market. I have several family members who drive for Uber&#x2F;Lyft and consider it a great way to make money. One of the aspects they like is how much independence they have: no manager, no set schedule, no need to work the same number of hours each week or each day. The pay is fine - not great - but the flexibility makes working for Uber much more appealing than e.g. working as a receptionist or taking another service job. Many drivers I&#x27;ve ridden with seem to value that component as well. If Uber switches to treating drivers as employees (which makes each driver have higher overhead) then they&#x27;ll probably switch to.... well, treating them as employees: stricter rules about when you have to drive, how much you have to drive, and so on. The tradeoff will benefit some employees - basically those who are trying to make Uber into a full-time job - at the expense of others.