California Governor Gavin Newsom is facing a lawsuit from the Teamsters union, which claims that his administration’s handling of self-driving truck regulations poses an “existential threat” to around 200,000 jobs. The union alleges that the new rules, recently adopted by the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and other state agencies, could adversely impact workers in the transportation sector.
Historically, California was unique in its ban on large self-driving vehicles, mainly due to concerns from labor groups about potential job losses among truck drivers. However, the DMV has now reversed this ban with new regulations, igniting outrage among the Teamsters, who argue that this change threatens hundreds of thousands of union jobs.
“The DMV has irresponsibly kept the public unaware of the economic and human costs associated with these revised self-driving vehicle regulations,” stated Teamsters attorney Julie Gutman Dickinson. She emphasized the need for court intervention to rescind these new regulations, arguing they were enacted illegally.
The lawsuit points out that the DMV did not conduct adequate economic studies to assess the changes’ impacts, claiming that the potential job losses have been severely underestimated. The Teamsters contend that the DMV falsely assured that no jobs would be lost, while their own estimates suggest over 200,000 jobs could be at risk.
Newsom has previously found himself in the middle of disputes between labor organizations and the self-driving vehicle industry, having vetoed state laws backed by unions that sought to restrict these trucks. He has expressed confidence that the new DMV rules will strike the right balance between protecting workers and fostering technological advancements.
Yet, labor organizations have vocalized their disappointment over his vetoes, insisting they can’t allow tech companies to jeopardize safety and job security for the sake of profit. They adamantly oppose any scenario in which automation replaces human drivers.
This issue is particularly pressing, as recent incidents involving self-driving cars have raised eyebrows. For instance, on July 4th, several Waymo vehicles were left unmoved in San Francisco amid traffic jams during a fireworks event. Earlier, two Waymo cars trapped a driver in his vehicle for an hour, prompting him to call for police help.
