The App Drivers Union (ADU) – backed by two ITF-affiliated unions, the Service Employees International Union Local 32BJ (SEIU) and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM Union) – has won state certification to represent approximately 70,000 rideshare drivers in Massachusetts. This is the first successful rideshare unionisation in the United States of America.
The ITF congratulates the App Drivers Union, SEIU Local 32BJ, the IAM Union, and every single worker, organiser and activist who gave their time, energy and solidarity to make this moment possible – this win is yours," said ITF General Secretary Stephen Cotton.
For nearly two years, the unions worked to unify drivers working across multiple platforms. They succeeded through grassroots campaigning, political organising and cross-union solidarity. Nearly 23,000 signatures were submitted in support of unionisation, meeting the threshold set by a Massachusetts ballot measure passed in 2024. The ADU is now the exclusive bargaining representative for drivers working for Uber, Lyft and other rideshare platforms in the state.
It's one of the biggest organizing union victories in the last century," said Autumn Weintraub, executive director of the App Drivers Union.
The ADU said that rideshare companies “will now have to reckon with the specific demands of drivers who are looking for a larger share of the industry’s earnings”.
Solidarity must now go global
"What the App Drivers Union has achieved in Massachusetts proves that platform workers can win when the labour movement stands together. We need that same unity in Geneva, where governments have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to adopt a binding international Convention on platform work at the International Labour Conference,” said Cotton. “The solidarity that carried this campaign to victory must now carry us to a Platform Workers Convention that delivers for workers."
From 1–12 June, the 114th International Labour Conference (ILC) convenes in Geneva, where governments, employers and workers' representatives will finalise negotiations on the binding international Convention on platform work. Last year's ILC made history by agreeing that such a Convention was needed. Now it must be delivered.
Platform transport workers and the ITF have been clear about what it must contain.
The Convention must:
- End the misclassification of workers as independent contractors – the central mechanism platforms use to strip workers of their rights.
- Guarantee fair pay for all time worked, including waiting time, and ban platforms from charging workers fees.
- Ensure every platform worker, regardless of employment status, has full access to occupational health and safety protections, freedom of association and the right to organise.
- Deliver genuine accountability over algorithmic management – including written explanations and the right to human review where drivers face deactivation or suspension.
The win in Massachusetts shows what can be done when workers come together. Now the whole movement must come together to win it for platform workers everywhere.
Read more here on the upcoming ILC: The world has a chance to change platform work forever – governments must deliver
Photo credit: App Drivers Union
