• Uber has reportedly settled a legal battle it was involved in with a former Uber Eats driver.
• Amita Gupta was sacked after being 10 minutes late with a food delivery, taking the case to the Fair Work Commission before heading to the Federal Court.
• The Federal Court judges heavily questioned Uber’s lawyers on the company’s stance as a platform rather than an employer.
• Visit Business Insider Australia’s homepage for more stories.

Uber has reportedly settled a case with a former Uber Eats driver who was axed after being 10 minutes late with a delivery, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

Adelaide-based Amita Gupta took her case to the Federal Court – with backing from the Transport Worker’s Union (TWU) – after two failed attempts with the Fair Work Commission.

According to the TWU, the Federal Court savaged Uber during the November case, berating the company’s lawyers after they denied that Uber had any relationship to its drivers. The lawyers argued that Uber operated as a service rather than an employer, the SMH reported.

“Everybody knows what function Uber plays,” Justice Mordecai Bromberg said during the trial. “The restaurant’s function is to prepare the food. Uber’s function is to deliver the food; isn’t that right?”

Uber’s response, however, was to highlight that it acts as an “intermediary between the restaurant and the customer”.

TWU National Secretary Michael Kaine said in a statement the Federal Court exposed Uber’s workings.

“The judges’ questions to Uber exposed just how utterly ridiculous and farcical its contract contortions are when it comes to getting around our labour laws,” he said.

“The judges clearly saw through Uber’s spin and ‘careful contract’ and recognised the sham it is. Uber has constructed a business model in order to refuse its workers any rights, to minimum pay, the right to challenge an unfair sacking, to protective gear or training.

“The Federal Government has refused to hold Uber to account over this blatant charade but the Federal Court has exposed it.”

Kaine added that it should not have taken workers like Gupta standing up to global companies to hold them accountable.

“Workers across Australia should have rights and the Federal Government must take responsibility for workers across Australia who are being abused and exploited every day by the likes of Uber,” he said.

The case was reportedly settled before a final judgement was made at the court, making Gupta the first person to get a settlement from Uber over this issue in Australia, the SMH reported. If the court judges had ruled that Uber drivers ware not independent contractors – and thus, employees – Uber would have had to pay them a minimum wage and follow unfair dismissal guidelines.

“We welcome the resolution of this case and look forward to continuing our efforts to improve the quality of independent work in Australia,” an Uber Eats spokesperson told Business Insider Australia via email.

“Both of the Fair Work Commission’s rulings in this case confirmed that delivery-partners using the Uber Eats platform are independent contractors, with the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission finding that the characteristics of the Uber Eats business point ‘decisively away’ from a finding of employment.

“It also reflects what 87 percent of delivery partners tell us – that they value the freedom and flexibility the Uber app provides.”

The case follows a high-profile ballot initiative in California in November, where the state voted in favour of having gig economy workers classified as independent contractors rather than employees.

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