Adolph

INTRODUCTION

A claim under the Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act of 2004, Labor Code section 2698 et seq. (PAGA), may only be brought by an “aggrieved employee.” (Lab. Code, § 2699, subd. (a).) Plaintiff Erik Adolph contends that Uber Technologies, Inc. (Uber) misclassified employees as independent contractors and seeks civil penalties against Uber under PAGA. Before he began working for Uber, Adolph signed an arbitration agreement, under the terms of which all disputes between them are to be resolved in arbitration and which purported to waive Adolph’s right to assert a PAGA claim. The California Supreme Court has held, however, that PAGA claims are not subject to arbitration and that an agreement waiving the right to bring a representative claim under PAGA violates public policy and is unenforceable. (Iskanian v. CLS Transportation Los Angeles, LLC (2014) 59 Cal.4th 348, 384 (Iskanian).) Based on Iskanian and the cases following it, the trial court denied Uber’s petition to compel arbitration. Uber contends on appeal that the initial question of whether Adolph is an employee—who may bring a representative PAGA claim—or an independent contractor—who may not—must be…