TimesLive reports that in determining that Uber drivers were not contractors but employees of Uber SA‚ the Commission for Conciliation‚ Mediation and Arbitration’s (CCMA’s) starting point was the Labour Relations Act (LRA).  

The CCMA made a ruling on the status of eight Uber drivers earlier this month after the company raised a preliminary point that the CCMA had no jurisdiction to hear unfair dismissal disputes referred to the commission by the drivers.  The drivers had been “deactivated” by Uber‚ meaning they could not work for Uber, it was argued.  The starting point for commissioner Winnie Everett’s analysis was Section 213 of the LRA.  Everett also relied on the “Code of Good Practice: Who is an Employee?”  The code was issued by the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) and sets out guidelines for determining whether persons are employees or not.  In her analysis‚ Everett found that Uber drivers were subject to the control of Uber.  She said this and other factors indicated the drivers were by no means independent or running their own transportation businesses.

• Read this report by Ernest Mabuza in full at TimesLive

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