Uber reclassifies its 70,000 UK drivers as workers, grants rights

After a landmark court ruling, the UK becomes the first country where Uber treats drivers as employees eligible for benefits.

Uber Technologies Inc. will reclassify all 70,000 of its U.K. drivers as workers, entitling them to the minimum wage, vacation pay and other benefits after a landmark ruling from the Supreme Court last month. The ride-hailing app’s drivers will receive at least the national living wage of 8.72 pounds ($12.11) per hour starting Wednesday. This will be the minimum drivers can earn, in what Uber described as an “earnings floor, not an earnings ceiling.” The U.K. will be the first country in the world where Uber will have this business model. The firm didn’t specify how much the reclassification will cost, but said it doesn’t expect to change its earnings forecast for the quarter or the year. Uber shares declined less than 1% in after-hours trading on Tuesday.