Labor will heap pressure on Uber and other rideshare platforms to better handle sexual misconduct complaints against drivers, as the Albanese government concedes its laws giving gig economy workers unfair dismissal-style protections need bolstering.
The move from employment and workplace minister Amanda Rishworth follows an investigation by this masthead revealing that Uber drivers accused of sexual harassment and threatening behaviour were being allowed back on the roads through unfair termination cases because the ride-sharing giant is not asking alleged victims to testify about their experiences.
In response, the government will direct platforms how to improve their complaints processes as well as exploring potential tightening of deactivation laws to ensure the gig economy companies are using the code as intended, sources familiar with the matter said.
These new laws, introduced by the government last year, mean that gig economy workers who believe their accounts were unfairly deactivated by their platforms can appeal to the Fair Work Commission (FWC). This has triggered a flood of applications from Uber drivers claiming bans on them were unwarranted, and that the company’s investigation processes were insufficient.
In multiple cases seen by this masthead, the FWC has ordered that a driver’s access to Uber must be reinstated largely because the company did not offer first-hand testimony from the passenger who complained.
The $210 billion company argues that letting the predominantly female passengers testify would risk re-traumatising them – an approach it says has been formulated based on expert advice from victim group WESNET – but the company’s practices have prompted concerns from anti-sexual harassment and women’s rights advocates.
Since the laws came into effect in February 2025, dozens of cases appealing Uber deactivations that have been referred to the commission have followed a similar pattern: a customer lodges a brief complaint about a driver, alleging inappropriate behaviour through an in-app chat, Uber then notifies the driver of the claim, the driver denies the claim, and then Uber ultimately deactivates their account, effectively barring them from working.
Drivers who have appealed to the Commission have variously claimed that racism or discrimination, as well as grumpy or drunk passengers seeking refunds from Uber, are behind false complaints.
Many cases are thrown out because drivers don’t meet the eligibility threshold, but those that do and whose appeals are considered by the commission have met little resistance from Uber.
Over the past few months the Commission has ordered Uber reinstate drivers accused of masturbating during a ride, or withholding food deliveries from a female customer until she kissed him on the basis the rideshare platform did not provide evidence supporting the allegations.
Since the laws came in, the Transport Workers Union (TWU) has since said that anecdotally, Uber appears to be reinstating more and more drivers before their appeals reach a hearing before the Commission.
The TWU – while a proponent of the laws they see as recalibrating the power dynamic in the gig economy away from large companies back to contractors who could suddenly find themselves out of work after a complaint with no avenue for response – has said it is important to deal with genuine driver misconduct seriously.
“They know the systems they put in place are totally inconsistent with providing the package of evidence they need to satisfy a tribunal,” the TWU’s national secretary Michael Kaine has said.
Slightly more than a year after the laws came into effect, the government has now acknowledged gig economy platforms need to more quickly and effectively deal with sexual misconduct complaints.
Rishworth said that “sexual harassment, sexual assault and sexual violence has no place in our community”.
“I am working as a priority with platforms, union and safety experts to ensure that the deactivation is used as we intended in cases of sexual misconduct – to protect the safety of consumers and ensure swift action is taken against predators,” she said.
“The Government is committed to ensuring everyone can use rideshare services safely and with confidence.”
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Elias Visontay is a National Consumer Affairs Reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via email.