Uber BV vs Aslam: a landmark case for employment law 👨‍✈️

• Arjun Santilale

Uber BV vs Aslam serves as a landmark case for employment law in a modern economy. Decided by the UK Supreme Court in 2021, it was established that people who drove for Uber were labelled workers rather than self-contractors. This was important because workers have certain legal rights, which self-contractors don’t. Ultimately, this case serves its importance through understanding that, despite contractual labels, priority is placed on the real working relationship between a company and individuals.

To understand the case, it is important to consider how Uber works. Uber provides a smartphone app that connects passengers with drivers who are willing to give them rides. Drivers use their own vehicles and can choose when to log into the app and accept trips. Because drivers appear to have choices over their working hours, Uber argued that it was only a technology platform that allowed independent drivers to find customers. According to this view, drivers were self-employed contractors running their own businesses, meaning the company was not responsible for providing employment rights.

However, many drivers argued that this view did not reflect how the system really worked. Two drivers, Yaseen Aslam and James Farrar, brought a legal claim stating that they should be classified as workers, rather than self-employed contractors. Under legislation such as the Employment Rights Act 1996, workers are entitled to important rights, including the national minimum wage and paid annual leave. Aslam and Farrar argued that Uber played a pertinent role in deciding which rides were offered and so forth, meaning they weren’t truly self-employed. 

The case first began in an employment tribunal in 2016, where the drivers were successful. Uber appealed the decision, but the ruling was upheld by the Employment Appeal Tribunal and later by the Court of Appeal. Eventually, the dispute reached the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, the highest court in the UK legal system. In February 2021, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that Uber drivers should be classified as workers under UK law.

It is important to note that the court did not label the drivers as employees, which is a separate category that provides even greater legal protections, such as from unfair dismissal. Instead, the judges said that Uber drivers fall into the legal category of workers. UK employment law generally recognises three main categories of working status: employees, workers, and self-employed individuals. Employees have the most extensive legal rights, workers have a smaller but still important set of protections, and self-employed individuals have the least legal protection but greater independence. By deciding that Uber drivers were workers, the court made sure that they would receive basic employment protections without fully categorising them as employees.

In reaching its decision, the Supreme Court carefully looked at the real working relationship between Uber and its drivers. Rather than focusing only on the written contract created by Uber, the judges considered how the working arrangement was actually carried out. This approach was particularly important because companies may sometimes draft contracts in ways that attempt to avoid employment responsibilities.

The court identified several factors which showed Uber maintained a high level of control over drivers. First, Uber sets the fares that passengers pay, meaning drivers cannot negotiate their own prices. Second, Uber determines the terms under which rides are provided. Third, the company monitors drivers through a rating system and can remove drivers from the platform if their ratings fall below a certain level. Finally, drivers may face consequences if they reject too many trip requests. These factors showed that drivers were not running their own independent businesses but were instead working within a system largely run by Uber.

Another important aspect of the ruling was the court’s interpretation of working time. The judges decided that drivers should be considered working not only when they have a passenger in their car, but also when they are logged into the app, located in their working area, and ready to accept ride requests. This being established heightened the impact of the ruling because it recognised more of the time drivers spend available for work, leading to an overall increase in wages.

Although the ruling directly applied to the drivers who brought the claim, its impact quickly extended beyond them. The decision effectively created a legal precedent that influences how courts approach similar disputes involving gig-economy companies. As a result, the case has become extremely important for understanding employment law in the modern labour market.

The importance of this case for the legal system today is clear. One of the key principles established by the decision is that courts must examine the reality of a working relationship rather than simply accepting how a company describes it in a contract. Businesses cannot avoid legal obligations simply by labelling individuals as self-employed if the actual working conditions show that the company exercises excessive control.

This principle is particularly relevant because, as the gig economy continues to grow, many companies now rely on app-based platforms that offer flexible work but classify individuals as independent contractors. This includes delivery services such as Deliveroo. A case was brought forward under similar grounds in 2023, and this precedent was used, but to establish that people were self-employed. Deliveroo allowed much more freedom in comparison to Uber. Before this case, there was a lot of uncertainty about how employment law should apply to these modern forms of work. The decision in Uber BV v Aslam helped clarify that traditional legal rights can still apply even when work is organised through digital platforms.

The case also demonstrates how the legal system can adapt to social and technological change. Employment law developed long before ride-sharing apps existed, yet the Supreme Court was able to apply existing legal principles to a completely new business model. This highlights the flexibility of the legal system and its ability to continue protecting workers as modern working practices are transforming.

The middle ground:

Uber BV v Aslam is a landmark case that has had a lasting impact on UK employment law. The Supreme Court ruled that Uber drivers should be classified as workers because of the level of control the company exercises over them. Although the decision technically applied to the drivers who brought the claim, it created an important precedent that continues to influence how courts approach employment disputes today. Most importantly, the case reinforced the principle that judges must look at the true nature of working relationships rather than relying solely on contractual labels. For this reason, the case remains highly significant for understanding how the legal system protects workers in the modern gig economy.