Press Release

For Immediate Release

Contact Information

Cynthia Santana/ Office of Labor Standards Communications Manager
Phone: 206-256-5219 
Email: cynthia.santana@seattle.gov 

Alan Pyke/ Seattle City Attorney’s Office Communications Director
Phone: 425-566-9568
Email: alan.pyke@seattle.gov

App-Based Worker Deactivation Rights Ordinance Stands Against a Challenge by Uber and Instacart Against a Challenge by Uber and Instacart

Ninth Circuit Panel Upholds District Court’s Denial of Uber and Instacart’s Efforts to Block Ordinance

Seattle, WA (March 6, 2026) – Seattle's law requiring tech giants to be transparent about the policies they use to kick app-based delivery drivers off their platforms secured a major victory on Wednesday, when a federal appeals court rejected Uber and Instacart's attempt to have the law thrown out.

The companies sued in 2024 to invalidate the city's App-Based Worker Deactivation Rights ordinance, which requires large delivery app companies to set and communicate clear policies for when they will remove gig workers from their services. A three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled in the city's favor on Wednesday, upholding U.S. District Judge Marsha Pechman's decision not to grant the companies a preliminary injunction blocking the law from taking effect.

“Here in Seattle, we will always fight to protect workers. I’m grateful that our attorneys and our colleagues at the Office of Labor Standards were able to achieve this victory,” said Seattle City Attorney Erika Evans. “Everyone deserves clarity, transparency, integrity and due process from the companies that make money from their labor, and I’m glad the Ninth Circuit recognized Seattle’s legitimate right to require these apps to set clear rules around safe, efficient operations and tell their workforce what those policies are.”

“OLS commends the court’s decision as a significant victory for app-based workers in Seattle. This Ordinance, the first of its kind in the country, establishes clear, common sense protections for app-based workers from being wrongfully deactivated, either temporarily or permanently. Because deactivation blocks a worker’s ability to perform any services for a network company, arbitrary company action can have devastating impacts on their ability to make a living,” said OLS Director Steven Marchese. “By requiring companies to clearly inform workers what might lead to deactivation and establish fair procedures, the App-Based Worker Deactivation Rights Ordinance provides gig workers a foundation for financial stability. Since our office began enforcement in January 2025, 249 workers have sought information about the law either in-person or through our dedicated online intake portal and OLS staff assisted over 30 workers in getting reactivated and required companies to rerun the correct deactivation process in over 20 instances.”

The Ordinance protects app-based workers from being unfairly blocked, or “deactivated,” and from using the apps where they earn income. A deactivation is a permanent or temporary blocking of a worker's ability to perform services for a network company.

Uber and Instacart alleged that the Ordinance compels speech in violation of the First Amendment, and that it is unconstitutionally vague.

The panel held that the Ordinance does not regulate speech subject to protection under the First Amendment because the Ordinance regulates nonexpressive conduct — the unwarranted deactivation of worker accounts.

The panel further held that the Ordinance is not unconstitutionally vague because it provides fair notice to a person of ordinary intelligence as to what grounds for deactivation are reasonably related to safety and efficiency.

Key rights and obligations include:

• The Ordinance makes certain types of deactivations unlawful.

• Network companies must provide app-based workers with their deactivation policies, which must describe what may lead to deactivation and must be reasonably related to the network company’s safe and efficient operations.

• Network companies must follow certain procedural steps before most deactivations.

• Network companies must establish a process for app-based workers to challenge their deactivation with the company.

• Network companies must provide notice to an app-based worker before most deactivations and provide the worker with access to records substantiating the deactivation.

To read the Ninth Circuit’s ruling, click here.

For more information and resources about the App-Based Worker Deactivation Rights Ordinance and other app-based worker laws including the App-Based Worker Paid Sick and Safe Time and App-Based Worker Minimum Payment Ordinances please visit the OLS App-Based Worker Ordinances webpage by clicking here. For questions, please call 206-256-5297 or email laborstandards@seattle.gov.

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