Category: Rick Scott

Appellate court says Uber drivers are independent contracts, not employees

Siding with the San Francisco-based technology giant, a Florida appeals court Wednesday upheld a decision by Gov. Rick Scott’s administration that Uber drivers are independent contractors – not employees – and therefore not eligible for unemployment benefits. The unanimous decision by the three-judge panel of the 3rd District Court of Appeals stems from an unemployment claim filed in 2015 by Darrin McGillis, who spent five months as an Uber driver before the company dropped him.

Two Florida ports cancel plans to ink pacts with Cuba

Florida Gov. Rick Scott speaks at a press conference about the Zika virus in Doral, Florida, U.S. August 4, 2016. Two Florida ports have canceled plans to sign cooperation pacts with Communist-ruled Cuba after state Governor Rick Scott threatened to cancel their funding if they did business with the “Cuban dictatorship.”

Locals represent in Washington

Two locals represented the Florida panhandle in the nation’s capital last week at very different events — one at the inauguration celebrations and one during the Women’s March on Washington. Miramar Beach resident Suzanne Harris went up early in the week to attend the Florida Ball as the guest of U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz.

States – Including West Virginia – Face Questions About Billionaire Leaders

Some of the conflict-of-interest issues swirling around President-elect Donald Trump in Washington are playing out on a smaller scale in West Virginia, where the richest man in the state – an Appalachian coal baron with real estate, resort and farm holdings, too – is about to be sworn in as governor. Democratic Gov.-elect Jim Justice, like Trump, has refused to shed his holdings, giving assurances he can be trusted to act honorably.