Uber Technologies Inc. (NYSE: UBER) drivers in Victoria ratified Canada’s first union contract for app-based rideshare workers, marking a major breakthrough in the fight to organize gig economy labour.
Announced on Monday, the agreement covers more than 1,000 drivers represented by UFCW Local 1518 after workers voted to unionize in July 2025. Additionally, the deal establishes one of North America’s first legally enforceable collective agreements for rideshare workers.
For years, platform companies framed gig work as flexible and entrepreneurial. However, drivers often absorbed fuel costs, insurance expenses and unpaid downtime between rides.
Workers also faced abrupt account deactivations and shifting pay structures controlled by opaque algorithms. Consequently, many drivers argued the system treated them like employees when enforcing discipline but like contractors when avoiding labour protections.
The Victoria agreement changes that dynamic through formalized protections negotiated directly by workers. Furthermore, labour advocates say the deal could influence organizing campaigns across Canada’s growing gig economy.
The contract follows labour law reforms introduced by the British Columbia government in 2025. Those changes lowered barriers preventing app-based workers from unionizing and extended additional employment protections.
According to UFCW, negotiations with Uber lasted eight months before workers secured the agreement. Additionally, union representatives said bargaining focused heavily on creating meaningful worker representation within the platform system.
The union stated that workers wanted more than improved compensation. Instead, negotiators pushed for a stronger voice when companies make operational decisions affecting drivers.
The agreement introduces formal dispute resolution procedures and stronger health and safety measures. Furthermore, it establishes clearer processes governing driver discipline and account deactivation.
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Drivers completing 751 trips will receive bonuses
Drivers will also receive direct union representation during disputes with Uber management. Previously, many workers dealt with company issues through automated systems or digital support channels alone.
Labour experts say those protections carry enormous importance in app-based industries. Drivers can effectively lose access to work immediately after deactivation from the platform. Additionally, many traditional employment protections still do not apply to gig workers.
The contract also improves financial stability for drivers who rely heavily on rideshare income. Beginning in September, workers completing at least 150 trips will qualify for quarterly bonuses.
Drivers completing 751 or more annual trips will receive bonuses exceeding CAD$2,500 by the end of the four-year contract. Meanwhile, wait-time fees, cancellation fees and out-of-region fees will increase by five per cent annually.
Across the agreement’s lifespan, those fees will rise by 20 per cent. Consequently, many drivers expect the deal to reduce some of the economic instability common throughout gig work.
Workers involved in negotiations described the contract as a major step toward fairness and dignity. Additionally, bargaining committee members credited worker solidarity for securing gains against one of the world’s largest platform companies.
Bargaining committee member Gilberto Talero Almanza said drivers proved collective action could deliver meaningful results. He also said the agreement allows drivers to continue contributing economically while receiving greater respect on the job.
Another bargaining committee member, Amninder Singh, described the organizing effort as a year-and-a-half campaign built through cooperation among local drivers. Furthermore, Singh said workers achieved fairer compensation, stronger support systems and meaningful workplace protections.
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Gig workers lack many worker protections
Singh added that drivers now have clearer protections when conflicts arise with the company. Consequently, he argued the agreement should improve working conditions across the local rideshare industry.
UFCW Local 1518 president Patrick Johnson called the agreement historic for platform labour organizing. Additionally, Johnson argued the contract demonstrates how unions can adapt to changing forms of employment.
Johnson also said the contract’s economic gains and wellness protections could strengthen the rideshare sector over the long term. He described the agreement as evidence that app-based workers still possess collective bargaining power despite fragmented workplaces.
Unlike earlier arrangements between gig companies and worker organizations, the Victoria contract carries legal force. Furthermore, unionized workers negotiated the agreement directly rather than relying on corporate partnership frameworks.
That distinction matters because platform companies spent years resisting labour classification changes across North America. In many jurisdictions, companies still classify drivers as independent contractors rather than employees.
As a result, many gig workers lack overtime protections, termination rights and paid leave benefits. Additionally, companies often avoid workers’ compensation premiums and minimum wage requirements under existing labour structures.
Platform companies also invested heavily in lobbying campaigns opposing stronger labour standards. Labour advocates say corporations frequently warned governments that tighter regulation would hurt customers and businesses alike.
However, Victoria drivers continued organizing despite those warnings. The resulting agreement now provides one of the clearest examples of successful collective bargaining within Canada’s gig economy.
British Columbia’s reforms stopped short of fully reclassifying gig workers as employees. Nevertheless, the legal changes opened pathways allowing workers to organize and bargain collectively.
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Gig work continues expanding across Canada
Drivers built the union through conversations in parking lots, online chats and community worker networks. Furthermore, organizers overcame language barriers and isolated working conditions during the campaign.
Workers also confronted algorithmic management systems designed to separate drivers from one another. Despite those challenges, organizers succeeded in building solidarity among workers scattered throughout Victoria.
Labour advocates say the campaign challenges assumptions that gig workers cannot unionize effectively. Additionally, the victory demonstrates that app-based workers still share common interests despite individualized work structures.
The implications extend far beyond Victoria’s rideshare market. Gig work continues expanding across Canada in food delivery, parcel services and transportation sectors.
Many workers in those industries are recent immigrants or racialized Canadians facing precarious conditions and limited legal protections. Meanwhile, labour organizations increasingly view gig work as a test case for the future of employment standards.
Supporters of the Victoria agreement argue the contract provides a roadmap for workers elsewhere. The deal demonstrates how collective organizing can succeed even within highly decentralized app-based industries.
Employers hoping platform work would permanently weaken unions may now face renewed organizing pressure. Furthermore, labour groups say the Victoria campaign shows unions can adapt to modern employment structures rather than disappear beneath them.
The next challenge involves expanding similar organizing efforts into other Canadian provinces. Labour laws remain more restrictive elsewhere, and platform companies continue lobbying against stronger protections for gig workers.
Still, the Victoria agreement has already changed expectations surrounding app-based work in Canada. Additionally, organizers believe workers in other cities may soon push for comparable contracts and union representation.
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