Uber said on Monday it is in discussion with France's social security agency URSSAF after a media report indicated the agency had determined the company should have treated a large group of drivers as employees rather than independent contractors.
An Uber spokesperson described the engagement as a "collaborative, transparent, and open discussion with France's social security body, URSSAF." URSSAF declined to comment to Reuters, saying it does not publicly address individual cases or active matters for confidentiality reasons.
The report cited URSSAF as concluding that 71,194 drivers who provided services for Uber under independent-contractor agreements between 2019 and 2022 should have been classified as employees. According to the same report, URSSAF is seeking 1.2 billion euros in unpaid social security contributions plus an additional 512 million euros in penalties.
Uber noted the broader legal context in France, pointing to recent rulings that bear on driver status. The company referenced last year's decision by France's Supreme Court, which determined that drivers using the Uber app are independent contractors, rejecting the existence of a subordinate employment relationship and upholding an earlier Paris Court of Appeal judgment. In its statement the company said these rulings "have confirmed they are independent workers and clarified the framework we operate in."
The dispute in France is one facet of a wider pattern of regulatory and judicial scrutiny across Europe. The article noted that German courts have limited certain app-based ride-hailing models where they fail to meet passenger-transport rules, while in Italy Uber's licensed services have been the subject of long-running legal disputes and opposition from taxi drivers.
Court cases in France and the Netherlands were also described as ongoing tests of how ride-hailing platforms may operate and how drivers should be classified. The French Supreme Court ruling was reported as not retroactive, but observers expect it to weigh on pending and future decisions.
For reference, the report included the exchange rate used in coverage: $1 = 0.8430 euros.
Contextual note included in the original report: An investment service referenced in the original story evaluates Uber among many companies using automated analysis across multiple financial metrics. That service highlighted its use of AI-driven screens and cited past winners it identified, including Super Micro Computer (+185%) and AppLovin (+157%).