San Francisco sues staffing firm WorkWhile over worker misclassification
CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES — The San Francisco City Attorney’s Office filed a lawsuit against WorkWhile, a temporary staffing firm, accusing it of misclassifying its workers as independent contractors.
The lawsuit, led by City Attorney David Chiu, claims that WorkWhile’s practices violate labor and employment laws, denying workers their rightful protections, wages, and benefits.
Allegations of systemic violations across industries
City Attorney David Chiu stated, “WorkWhile’s practice of misclassification violates labor and employment laws across a shocking number of industries. To add insult to injury, WorkWhile has the infrastructure to appropriately classify its workers, but chooses to deny its workers their rights and benefits.”
The lawsuit highlights that WorkWhile’s workers, who operate in sectors such as warehousing, hospitality, food service, last-mile delivery, food production, event service, and general labor, often perform the same functions as employees at client businesses but do not receive the same benefits.
Denial of workers’ rights and benefits
The City Attorney’s Office pointed out that WorkWhile does not provide workers’ compensation. Instead, it charges workers a “trust and safety fee” of 54 cents per hour for route delivery shifts and 47 cents per hour for all other shifts.
This fee funds a substandard insurance-like product, effectively shifting the cost of a workers’ compensation-type protection from the employer onto low-wage workers.
Broader efforts to combat misclassification
This lawsuit is part of a broader effort by the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office to combat worker misclassification. Earlier this year, the office reached a $2.1 million settlement with hospitality staffing firm Qwick and a $5.25 million settlement with Instacart in 2023. The office is also actively litigating a misclassification case against Uber and Lyft.
Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, principal officer of the California Labor Federation and author of Assembly Bill 5, commented, “The San Francisco City Attorney’s office is sending a clear message to law-breaking companies that worker misclassification will not be tolerated. Staffing companies have always been employers, using an app doesn’t change that.”
Kim Tavaglione, Executive Director of the San Francisco Labor Council, added, “When gig workers are denied the basics of workers’ compensation, overtime, and minimum wage, society often picks up the bill. We have fought hard for these rights and protections, and we must ensure a level playing field where every employer plays by the rules.”
Call for worker testimonies
The City Attorney’s Office encourages current or former WorkWhile workers to share relevant information by emailing WorkWhileWorkers@sfcityatty.org.
The case, titled People of the State of California v. WorkWhile, et al, is being heard in San Francisco Superior Court.
This lawsuit underscores the ongoing efforts to enforce labor laws and protect workers’ rights in the state of California.
