Judge Grants Restraining Order for Truckers; Uber and Postmates Sue to Stop AB 5

Friday, January 3, 2020 | 0

A federal judge granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting the State of California from applying provisions of Assembly Bill 5 to truckers, and Uber and Postmates filed a third lawsuit challenging the measure.

AB 5, by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, is intended to ensure workers are properly classified as employees and enjoy protections including minimum wage, overtime, paid parental leave and workers’ compensation.

U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez, of San Diego, granted a temporary restraining order against AB 5 sought by the California Trucking Association while he considers imposing a permanent injunction, according to the Associated Press.

The decision protects more than 70,000 independent truckers from having to abandon $150,000 investments in clean trucks and forfeiting the right to set their own schedules in order to comply with AB 5.

Benitez ruled that truckers would be likely to suffer irreparable harm and that temporarily blocking the law from applying to them is in the public interest, according to the AP.

The American Society of Journalists and Authors and the National Press Photographers Association also asked a federal judge to grant them a temporary restraining order against the law.

Freelance writers and photographers seek quick relief from the new law, which they say could put some independent journalists out of business. They argue that AB 5 would unconstitutionally affect free speech and the media.

Meanwhile, Uber and Postmates have filed a lawsuit against the state, according to a Consumer Affairs report.

The companies claim AB 5 is unconstitutional for forcing them to change the fundamental structure of their business models to reclassify their workers as employees instead of contractors and hampers workers' ability to set flexible schedules.