Kenneth Glad
Questions about data-driven workplace decisions are moving into the courts. The dispute centres on earnings, personal information and control over access to work.
Drivers from several countries have joined legal action against Uber over the technology used to determine fares and distribute journeys.
The case was filed in Amsterdam, home to Uber’s European headquarters, and could concern about 241,000 people who have driven for the company across the EU and UK. Claimants allege that profiling and automated decision-making were unlawfully used when allocating work and calculating pay.
Campaign group Worker Info Exchange is leading the action. Beyond financial compensation, the plaintiffs want an injunction that would prevent Uber from continuing practices they argue violate GDPR protections.
The claim also alleges that information gathered from drivers was improperly used to train artificial intelligence models.
Uber rejects the accusations. “While we haven’t seen the claim yet, we categorically reject the allegations,” a spokesperson told The Guardian.
Uber says a driver’s record of accepting or rejecting trips does not affect the fare they are offered. It says differences in pay can come from factors linked to the journey itself, while higher rates may be used for trips that are less attractive to drivers.
Pay practices face challenge
Claimants estimate that drivers in the UK have lost about £5,000 in annual income since dynamic pricing was introduced there in 2023. The system reached the Netherlands in 2026.
Separate academic work has raised related questions. A 2025 study by University of Oxford researchers associated the pricing changes with declining driver earnings. Uber challenged those conclusions, arguing that the dataset examined did not present a complete picture.
The company has also faced regulatory action in the Netherlands. In August 2026, the Dutch Data Protection Authority, according to Reuters, imposed an €825m fine concerning how drivers were notified before accounts were deactivated through automated systems. Uber said it would appeal.
Drivers involved in the dispute describe the technology in more personal terms. Rotterdam driver Mohammed Shirwa told The Guardian: “It is like someone watching you all the time and knowing about your weakness – the boss is the algorithm.”
London driver Kola Oba told the publication: “It’s scary – they have all my information and they are using it against my own wellbeing.”
Sources: The Guardian, University of Oxford, Reuters
