Uber called its recent union deal ‘historic.’ A new complaint alleges it was actually against the law.
A day after striking an agreement with two of its unions covering wages, the company allegedly made a deal with the union without having to meet the requirement of seeking approval under an arbitration provision of its collective bargaining agreement.
The complaint was filed on Tuesday with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) by the Communications Workers of America, Local 100, a union that represents thousands of Uber drivers, said The Verge.
It alleges the union signed the agreement without first being given the opportunity to vote on it as required by Uber’s contract with Teamsters Local 508.
The complaint was filed after a union official found out about the agreement.
“I found out about this agreement by seeing a tweet about it,” said Steve Clark, the former Teamsters president who has been advising Uber since last year and who was also the negotiator of the deal. “It was obviously surprising to me, and I immediately went to the NLRB to take a look.”
Uber’s contract with the union makes one exception to an arbitration provision: if the company and union jointly bargain a new contract, the new contract has to be presented to a union vote before the two parties “go to arbitration,” where they can resolve labor disputes.
The NLRB also requires that when the union and company bargain to new agreements, they have to “meet and confer in good faith regarding any and all matters under negotiation.”
Uber didn’t respond to an email from The Verge with further comment.
Uber has been embroiled in several union disputes since the start of the year. The company signed a six-year, $13 billion contract with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in March.
The deal will give Uber more than $50 billion of its $70 billion annual revenue back to the government, with the funds used for workplace safety and worker safety improvements.
The company was also criticized
