Massachusetts voters approved a ballot measure that allows rideshare drivers to form unions and engage in collective bargaining, becoming the first US state to permit such activity among platform-based drivers. 

The new law resulting from Question 3 on the ballot will allow transportation network drivers to form “driver organizations” to collectively bargain with “transportation network companies,” defined as “companies that use a digital network to connect riders to drivers for pre-arranged transportation to create negotiated recommendations concerning wages, benefits and terms and conditions of work.” 

Drivers will not be required to engage in any union activities, and companies will be allowed to form multi-company associations to represent them when negotiating with driver organizations. The state’s Commonwealth Employment Relations Board will supervise the labor activities permitted by the new law and the secretary of labor will be responsible for approving or disapproving the negotiated recommendations. 

With 99% of votes counted as of Nov. 12, the ballot measure passed 53.8% to 46.2%. 

“Rideshare drivers are the backbone of the gig economy, ensuring millions of people across our state reach their destinations safely,” Mike Vartabedian, District 15 directing business manager for the International Association of Machinists and co-chair of the Yes on 3 campaign, said in a press release. “With the legislative and ballot debates complete, we are hopeful that the collective bargaining process brings drivers the improvements they need to help make their jobs sustainable ones that allow them to support their families.”  

Until now, there has been no state or federal process for rideshare drivers to join a union or bargain collectively. Drivers for Uber and Lyft, including approximately 70,000 in Massachusetts, do not have the right to organize under the National Labor Relations Act, a federal law that covers only employees, Reuters reported. 

“With the passage of this ballot measure, we look forward to working collaboratively on its implementations and addressing some of the language concerns we have during the legislative session next year,” Lyft said in a statement. 

A Tufts Center for State Policy Analysis report said that drivers may not be able to start forming unions right away, noting that when the city of Seattle in 2015 endorsed a version of sector-based bargaining for rideshare drivers, their effort was met with multiple lawsuits, NBC Boston reported.