The major shake-up coming for how Uber drivers are paid

Ride-share drivers in NSW will have the power to argue for minimum pay and conditions in a major overhaul of industrial relations laws that will hand gig-economy workers the power to take on the major operators.

Despite opposition from major ride-share apps such as Uber and DoorDash, the Minns government is moving to enshrine changes to workplace laws that will give gig-economy workers in the transport industry the power to argue for conditions such as penalty rates in the Industrial Relations Commission.

The NSW government is pushing ahead with changes to the gig-economy system despite pushback from operators. Credit: Dominic Lorrimer

The bill, to be introduced into parliament on Thursday, will also remove archaic rules that prevent contract drivers who deliver milk and bread from applying for the same protections.

The changes would allow platform companies, employers and unions to apply to the NSW Industrial Relations Commission for binding determinations on workers’ pay and conditions for the first time.

The bill has faced resistance from gig-economy operators such as Uber, DoorDash, Menulog and DiDi, which complained the legislation went further than similar laws passed by the federal government last year because it could open a path to conditions such as overtime.

While the Commonwealth laws ruled out those sorts of changes, the NSW law would give the IRC more flexibility to set conditions. Transport Workers’ Union assistant secretary Nick McIntosh hailed the new laws, saying they would make the industry safer for workers.

“There have been 15 deaths of gig workers in Sydney alone in under a decade and state governments up until today have not lifted a finger even though, clearly, one of the issues is that workers are paid below minimum wage and per delivery,” he said.

“If you have to work as much as you can in the smallest amount of time to make ends meet, it means the incentive is to rush or cut corners.”

NSW Industrial Relations Minister Sophie Cotsis said the changes would provide an avenue for gig-economy workers who now have “no mechanism” to seek better pay. She said it would be up to the IRC to consider whether new conditions would affect the price paid by consumers.

“We don’t want to add extra burdens or costs, and it will be up to the IRC to make those decisions, but we also are very aware that a lot of these gig workers are poorly paid,” she said.

After negotiations, the government agreed to change the draft bill to reduce duplication, but many of the opponents of the bill still have reservations.

In a statement, a spokesman for Uber said the laws “remain redundant”.

“This bill merits further scrutiny by the NSW parliament to avoid unnecessary confusion for workers and businesses alike,” he said.

The changes are among a suite of promises Labor made to reform the gig economy before the 2023 election, after the deaths of several delivery drivers across Sydney.

Those promises included a scheme to provide workers compensation benefits to gig workers, which Cotsis said the government was still working through.

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