Uber driver declared employee as the company loses another ruling

Despite two appeals from the taxi firm, the ruling was upheld

Uber's US operation has suffered another legal defeat in its efforts to class its drivers as independent contractors, after a California labour board ruled that a former driver was an employee and so eligible for unemployment benefits.

The ruling is particularly significant as it was upheld twice on appeal, once to an administrative law judge and once to the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board. But as the ruling comes from an administrative board, not a full court, Uber says it "does not have any wider impact or set any formal or binding precedent", meaning future cases are free to decide differently.