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Posted: 2019-09-11T23:25:18Z | Updated: 2019-09-11T23:31:50Z

After California lawmakers passed legislation on Wednesday seeking to reclassify many gig economy workers from independent contractors to employees with additional benefits and protections Uber said it still does not plan to consider its drivers full employees.

The ride-hailing company told reporters Wednesday that its drivers will not be reclassified as employees, even if Assembly Bill 5 is signed into law as widely expected. Tony West, Ubers chief legal representative, said the drivers will still be considered independent contractors because drivers work is outside the usual course of Ubers business .

West described the companys business as serving as a technology platform for several different types of digital marketplaces.

Under the legislation which the state Assembly approved on Wednesday and which Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is expected to sign many gig-economy workers stand to gain new labor protections and benefits, like a minimum wage, unemployment and disability insurance, and the right to form a union.

The legislation clarifies the conditions under which a worker should be considered an employee. It says workers should be treated as independent contractors only if (a) they are free from the control and direction of the company that hired them, (b) their work falls outside the usual business of the company and (c) they are engaged in work in an independent business of the same type as the companys.

Uber is claiming that its drivers pass that test and can thus be considered independent contractors.