A Los Angeles man was not an independent contractor while driving for Grubhub, a U.S. court ruled, ordering the company to pay the former staffer US$65.11 for minimum-wage violations. (Bloomberg)

Talking point: The court case stands to set a precedent in California for whether gig economy workers should be able to expense personal-vehicle costs. The question of whether people working in the gig economy should be classified as independent contractors, which most are, or as employees, which would offer more workplace protections, has long plagued the industry. Earlier this month, a California court ruled in favour of independent-contractor classifications, but opened the door for collective bargaining. In Canada, the federal government promised to better protect gig workers during the last election, as my colleague David Reevely reported, but the labour minister has since run into problems: mainly that not many gig workers fall under his authority.