A former Uber driver is appealing a decision last week by Gov. Rick Scott’s administration that drivers for the app-based transportation company should be considered independent contractors instead of employees.
Darrin McGillis filed a notice Friday in the 3rd District Court of Appeal as an initial step in challenging the decision by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, according to court documents.
The state agency’s decision means that former Uber drivers are not eligible to file unemployment claims and is part of a broader debate about how state and local governments should view the fast-growing car services.
McGillis and another former Uber driver, Melissa Ewers, filed unemployment claims in April. The state Department of Revenue in May issued findings that McGillis and Ewers had been employees of Uber. That led the company to file a protest with the Department of Economic Opportunity, which handles appeals of such issues. The decision last week reversed the findings of the Department of Revenue.