Uber is reclassifying UK drivers as workers — here’s what happens next

LONDON — Uber’s decision to reclassify its U.K. drivers as workers will lead to increased costs for the firm, according to analysts, hurting the company’s prospects in its most important European market.

Uber on Tuesday said it would begin treating all 70,000 of its drivers in Britain as “workers” entitled to a minimum wage, holiday pay and pension plans. It’s worth pointing out that this doesn’t mean “employee,” a separate legal status in the U.K. with extra employment rights.

It comes weeks after the country’s Supreme Court upheld a ruling that its drivers were workers, not independent contractors. While the decision…