According to an announcement by the company following the settlement, Uber agreed to "provide drivers with more information about their individual rating and how it compares with their peers".
The April 21 settlement, which still must be approved by a San Francisco federal judge, provides for a $100 million payout to drivers in those two states on the basis of how many miles each has driven for Uber.
"Uber tried to piecemeal this and said, 'OK, we'll just settle with California and MA drivers, '" said Brian H. Mahany, the plaintiff attorney who filed the class-action lawsuit in IL. The two drivers are now seeking to recover their unpaid overtime wages as well as other expenses. "That's like sticking your finger in a dam when there's water pouring out all over the place".
"We were pleased that the court today recognised the role of the Government in responding to the changing point to point transport industry", he said.
"Nearly 90 percent of drivers say the main reason they use Uber is because they love being their own boss", Uber said about the lawsuit in a statement.
Uber has fought numerous legal battles with its drivers over the issue of contractor vs employee classification, which could potentially make or break Uber's business model.
But the taxi owners contended that Transport Minister Dean Nalder and the Department of Transport had adopted a policy not to prosecute companies and individuals involved in providing Uber ride sharing services in WA since October 2014. The Florida and IL cases seek to cover a nationwide class, although the latter excludes California and MA because of the pending settlement in those states. As TechCrunch previously noted, Uber had to offer several concessions, with the biggest being $100 million in payments to the 385,000 drivers represented across both cases. The company also made concessions allowing drivers to receive tips, and to form an association - although not a union - to discuss grievances with the company. They also will clarify that passengers are allowed to tip drivers if they want to but it should not be through the app. "Uber had to anticipate that this would have occurred".