Illinois ride-share union bill pushed through amid disagreement on new
fee
[March 28, 2026]
By Sean Reed | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – An Illinois bill allowing thousands of ride-share
drivers to unionize made some motion in an Illinois House committee
Thursday, despite opposition from some stakeholders.
The bill sets a structure for how drivers would begin to unionize and
negotiate with industry leaders.
House Bill 4743 would allow the more than 100,000 contract employees of
ride-share services – such as Uber and Lyft – in the state to organize,
requiring a minimum of 10% of active drivers to begin the process. The
bill also sets a threshold of 30% of active drivers signing union
authorization cards to begin any negotiations with the ride-share
industry.
The bill would also add a new 20 cent fee to each ride conducted in the
state, something the Illinois Labor Relations Board opposes. Kimberly
Stevens from the Board said the fee creates a conflict of interest for
her organization.
“Our major concerns about this bill with regard to the fee imposed on
rides, that would, in the current form, come to the board to administer
and to make discretionary grants to unions that we also regulate,”
Stevens said.
Genie Kastrup, president of SEIU local 1, said the low threshold is
because roughly 86% of rides are done by about 20% of active drivers,
indicating that many work intermittently.
The passing of the bill continues a trend of bills being passed by
numerous committees, despite being incomplete, as representatives aimed
to meet a legislative deadline.
“They are not joining a traditional union. They will still be contract
workers,” Morris said. “So they'll still have their independent
contract, we just want to make sure that they have fair wages and a
voice. So it's just strictly for Uber drivers.”
Of the new fee, Ronnie Gonzalez with the Illinois Drivers Alliance said
it wouldn’t make sense to impose a fee on ride-share companies as a
whole, adding that a fee on each ride is more transparent.
[to top of second column]
|
Photo: Grace David / The Center Square
“You can say that you put it on the company, but where's it going to
go? It's going to come out of the driver's pocket, it's going to
come out of the consumer's pocket,” Gonzalez said. “There's no way
to argue that that's actually what happens in any scenario. So, at
least we're being honest.”
In questioning the bill, Rep. Ryan Spain, R-Peoria, asked if the
bill would return with an amendment after a second reading on the
floor and negotiations, highlighting a week-long trend of bills
being passed by numerous committees, despite negotiations with
stakeholders largely being incomplete.
“All of us, all week long – in all of our various committees – have
heard various versions of holding it on second [reading],” said
Spain.
The House’s deadline to pass bills out of committees was Friday,
meaning a large sum of incomplete bills moved forward after
representatives made verbal agreements to bring amendments to the
committees as the legislative session continues.
Gonzalez also said that similar legislation has passed in other
states, such as Massachusetts and New York, which have provided some
guidance for the Illinois policy.
“This isn't a brand new idea. There's been a lot of trial and error
that's happened in New York and Massachusetts. There is law on the
books in Massachusetts for this exact same thing and the same
parties that built that are coaching us through this,” Gonzalez
said.
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
