![](https://californiaglobe.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Screen-Shot-2020-01-13-at-1.37.01-PM.png)
San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott (You tube)
Instacart Defeats Emergency Independent Contractor Reclassification Attempt in San Diego
Tuesday’s court decision further weakens the limits of AB 5
By Evan Symon, February 4, 2020 9:46 pm
A California state court denied San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliot’s request for an emergency restraining order application to make all Instacart independent contractors employees.
Temporary restraining orders and independent contractors
Under the application for a temporary restraining order filed on January 29th, all Instacart workers would be reclassified as employees, in line with how rideshare, delivery drivers, and dozens of other former independent contractor positions currently are under the AB 5 law. Elliot challenged that the current system violated the California Unfair Competition Law, saying that using independent contractors instead of employees gave Instacart an unfair advantage over competitors. Elliot has been trying to reclassify Instacart employees since September.
Before Tuesday’s court decision, many Instacart employees had expressed their desire to remain independent contractors.
“If I was an employee, I would have to quit one of my jobs,” said Ryan Cardinale, a waiter from Oceanside who does Instacart work at night. “I mean, all it is is getting other people’s groceries. That shouldn’t be a full-time job. For most of us it is’t a full time job. It’s just something to do at night for extra cash. You know, I’m a waiter. I need this to make ends meet at the end of the month.”
Others cited the similar anti-AB 5 argument of wanting to have flexible hours.
“I can work whenever, which is great,” noted Ashley Breckenridge, who also works for Instacart. “I’m working for a degree online right now, plus I have two kids. A real hourly job with a schedule is out of the question, and I don’t want strangers in my car. Instacart was a perfect option.”
“If they have everyone become employees, I lose that. And I desperately need that openness in a job.”
Instacart and AB 5 repercussions
After the court’s decision on Tuesday, Instacart released a brief press statement saying that they were “pleased with the court’s decision.” The San Diego City Attorney’s Office also released a brief statement to the press conveying that they would continue to push for a “judicial review of Instacart’s exploitation of its workforce.”
Employment experts have said that challenges to expand, contract, and remove AB 5 would happen throughout the year. Currently several petitions and organizations have been set up to oppose AB 5, such as the Protect App-Based Drivers and Services Act. One movement to get a November ballot initiative to overturn AB 5 has reached 37% of the signatures needed. Some exemptions to AB 5 have already been made, such as truck drivers, while other lawsuits have been formed around it, such as the lawsuit made by freelance journalists.
“We’ve seen clear dividing lines,” explained Los Angeles employment specialist Stephanie Schmidt. “Among those employed by industries affected by AB 5, it’s split. People doing these jobs as a full-time job, or damn near it, have been overwhelmingly in favor of being made employees. Those against it generally do these jobs in a part-time basis or to pick up extra money. The stories of people wanting to do this to keep a flexible schedule fall under here.”
“It’s underemployed people wanting benefits and basic employee protections against people doing this as their second or third or forth job, or just doing this as a summer thing or briefly needing a few extra bucks. No matter which side you’re for you’re hurting someone, and that’s never a good position to be in.”
“I can’t speak to if AB 5 was a good thing or not. I can’t say for several reasons. But it’s clear that it’s beginning to find where the walls are and how they can be moved in.”
Tuesday’s San Diego Instacart decision is expected to be challenged by the San Diego City Attorney’s Office again in the near future.
- VP Harris Builds Gap Against Former President Trump According To Latest CA Presidential Election Poll - August 14, 2024
- Bill to Give Early Release To Prisoners Serving Life w/o Parole Back in CA Legislature - August 14, 2024
- Gov. Gavin Newsom Pushes for Cell Phone Restrictions In Schools - August 13, 2024
Workers need the right to DECIDE if they want to be employees or independents. This law should give the RIGHT to those who want to be employees, and also the CHOICE to those who do not.
Rights? Personal decisions made by independent taxpayer peasants in California? How dare you even suggest such an affront to the ruling class in the radical left dictatorship that is CA. A once open and free great state. Watching what’s happened here is heartbreaking and infuriating.
This is a personal opinion. I am so tired of this non-sense. The instigators came on the instacart platform as independent contractors. Were they not? I happen to be an independent contractor. And I surely don’t need these trouble makers speaking for me or on my behalf. No one , absolutely no one is keeping them held to a contract with Instacart. I truly wish they would just move on. Their ignorance is truly shining through now. Are they really that uneducated to think that they will bring the union in. Come on, ladies and gentlemen, let It go. Let it go. The only thing you are doing is giving the media, who has nothing else to go on, a paycheck. Seriously, who is writing these stories? Take a look folks. Basically, nobody. Non journalists at their finest. And, by the way, I am totally okay with my name and email being posted to this response.
I also work for instacart and I believe that we should have our own rights on if we want to be an instacart Shopper employee or independent contractor I would like to stay independent contractor myself do that I am disabled and cannot work a 40-hour job this job allows me to work when I can and make the hours that I can work and bring an extra money that disability does not cover for bills
The freaking “strike” the Cali shoppers did got EVERYONE’S $3 bonus for 5-star ratings taken away. Thanks to those Yahoo’s I’m losing $99+/week.
If you want to be an employee GO GET A REAL JOB! I work Instacart 45-60hrs/wk because a) I like to sing at work, b) I loathe being in buildings 8hrs a day, c) I can stop at any point of the day and go home to my family. Try that at a 9-5 job!
California shoppers, PLEASE stop trying to “fix” Instacart for us. Just go work elsewhere.