Gig-worker test retroactive, California Supreme Court says in ‘important’ ruling

California’s Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the test the state adopted for determining worker classification is retroactive, which could have big implications for gig companies like Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc.

The “ABC test” was determined in a state Supreme Court decision in 2018, called Dynamex, and was later codified in Assembly Bill 5, which became law in 2020. Under the test, workers can be considered independent contractors only if they control their work; if their duties fall outside the scope of a company’s normal business; and if they have an independent business doing that work.