On the one hand, this is a tremendous success, but on the other, it’s an absolute failure of the entire state apparatus. Finally, after all these years, someone has admitted to someone employed by the UBER Platform that, in fact, platforms suspend accounts arbitrarily and without any control. Below is the full press release we received. The case was conducted in Australia, so for us, it essentially has only a tinge of empty satisfaction, and nothing changes in our daily lives.
Uber ordered to pay lost wages in first-ever case of unfair deactivation
Press release – September 24, 2025
The Australian Council of Trade Unions has welcomed the groundbreaking decision of the Fair Work Commission, ordering Uber to reimburse a driver unfairly barred from using the platform for lost wages. This is a breakthrough for agency workers and union members who fought for this protection under new employment laws introduced by the Albanian government.
In the first successful unfair deactivation case in which compensation was awarded, the Fair Work Commission found that the two-month deactivation of Adelaide Uber driver Mohammad Shareed Hotak was “manifestly unfair.”
The case was brought by the Transport Workers’ Union (TWU) on Mohammad’s behalf after his Uber account was deactivated after he reported being assaulted by passengers who falsely accused him of threats. The Commission noted Mohammad’s consistently high performance over four and a half years and the lack of evidence to support the serious allegations.
The two-month deactivation period caused financial and emotional hardship for Mohammad, who works up to seventy hours a week to support his family.
Uber reactivated Mohammad’s account during the proceedings, arguing that there was no need for redress. The full bench of the Fair Work Commission rejected the company’s claim, warning that such tactical reinstatement of workers would allow platforms to avoid liability.
The Commission’s ruling confirms that gig economy workers now have enforceable rights that allow them to hold companies accountable, including the right to compensation in the event that unfair dismissal results in loss of income and hardship.
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