Drivers at a Northampton-based taxi firm who were required to wear uniforms, drive branded cars and log on to an app in order to accept jobs have won the right to be recognised as workers.
The employment tribunal’s ruling in the Bounds Taxis case is the latest to affect the gig economy. It follows the Supreme Court’s landmark judgment in the Uber vs Aslam case, handed down in February, where the court ruled Uber drivers were workers entitled to rights including holiday pay and the national minimum wage whenever they had the Uber app switched on.
Two drivers, Mr Shah and Mr Adjei, brought a claim against United Travel Group, which traded as Bounds Taxis, arguing that they should be recognised as workers entitled to rest breaks and paid holiday.
The respondent argued that the drivers were self-employed as it merely provided an app called “iCabbie” for a fixed fee of £175 per week to enable them to receive jobs. The app rental fee is non-negotiable and applies regardless of the hours worked. If a driver fails to pay the fee they have to pay a £10 penalty for each day they fail to pay.
If they did not log in to the app, they could not receive jobs for Bounds Taxis. They were not allowed to accept jobs outside the app and if they missed a particular job or declined it, they would be logged off the app for a period of time.
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The drivers were also required to attend an onboarding session at the Bounds office. If a driver failed to attend, they could not obtain work through the app until they had completed the induction.
There were penalties for not wearing a Bounds Taxis uniform or displaying Bounds branding on their cars. If they failed to do so, they would be logged off the app and therefore unable to work. This was policed via spot checks which also considered the cleanliness of their vehicles.
Bounds set the fares for jobs, and drivers had no control over these. Drivers had to accept discounts that were being marketed by Bounds, which took a percentage of all the fares.
The tribunal heard that drivers were expected to accept jobs once they had logged on to the app. If they did not, the driver would be penalised. Drivers were not able to provide a substitute if they could not complete a job.
At the tribunal hearing, Bounds argued that it provided a service – the app – for drivers under a contract, and that a separate contract between the driver and passenger arose when a driver accepted a job.
It said that drivers could work when they wished and were under no obligation to accept work, nor was the company under an obligation to offer any. However there was some element of control for “commercial reasons”.
Employment judge Robin Postle found that the respondent’s evidence was largely “unhelpful, disingenuous and evasive”.
The judge said: “The reality of the situation was that the respondents controlled the drivers to such a degree [that] there was clearly an overarching contract between the parties.
“The fact that the claimants may have represented themselves as self-employed is irrelevant. It is clear from the factual basis that each driver had no choice, that was imposed upon them by the respondents no doubt to avoid any potential employer-employee obligations.”
He said the fact that drivers needed to pay a £175 fee for the app meant they did not have substantial autonomy and independence, as they needed to log into the app in order to make the regular payment economically viable for them.
The tribunal ruled that the drivers were workers “without doubt”.
Claimant Shaqat Shah, who is also chair of App Drivers & Couriers Union (ADCU) Northampton branch, said:“I am so pleased and relieved that Bounds drivers are now finally recognised as the workers we always were. The era of brutal exploitation in the local minicab trade must come to an end but Northampton City Council, who both license Bounds and use its services, must no longer turn a blind eye to the abuse that has gone on for too long.”
Yaseen Aslam, president of ADCU, said: “This case once again proves that the problem of worker abuse in the private hire sector is widespread and deeply rooted in an industry that employs more than 250,000 people nationwide. The ADCU will not hesitate to protect our members wherever they may be and there will be plenty more similar cases to come. If the government will not enforce the law to protect the most vulnerable workers in this trade, then we will.”
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Bounds Taxis has been contacted for comment.
