As Seattle officials continue to focus on the wellbeing of rideshare drivers, a new law went into effect on July 1 that protects drivers from unwarranted termination or deactivation.  Seattle is the first city to offer rideshare drivers this type of worker protection.

According to Business Insider, Justin Mahwikizi, an Uber or Lyft driver, is suing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) over its federal mask mandate. The lawsuit claims the mandate was unconstitutional and limited Mahwikizi’s freedom of religion and freedom of speech because he had to refuse service to unmasked passengers.

To compensate drivers for paid sick days during the COVID-19 pandemic, Uber has agreed to pay $3.4 million to more than 15,000 drivers in Seattle. In addition to the $3.4M, Uber also has to pay $11,000 in fines.

In a regulatory filing on June 22, 2021, Uber announced that it would be purchasing Cornershop, a Latin American delivery startup. Cornershop, which is headquartered in Chile, was founded in 2015. Oskar Hjertonsson, Daniel Undurraga, and Juan Pablo Cuevas expanded the company to eight countries, including Chile, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Peru, and the United States and Canada.

In a recent hearing regarding a lawsuit against Uber, San Francisco U.S. District Court Judge Vince Chhabria believes the company’s driver-rating system could be affected by passengers’ racial bias.