In his most recent “Takings Talk” column for Daily Journal, Manatt Appellate Senior Counsel Michael Berger discussed a Washington Supreme Court case at the intersection of gig workers, the COVID-19 pandemic and takings litigation: Washington Food Indus. v. City of Seattle.
Berger provided background on how this litigation came to be and noted that it is the second recent case where appellate courts have mixed takings law with labor law. He said that, because contracts have been held to be property in the past, the court determined plaintiffs had a property right at stake. He added that the contracts established between the parties in this case were “clearly, and adversely, affected by the city’s actions” when Seattle decided to provide gig workers with protected “hazardous duty” pay amid the pandemic.
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