In a deal with Uber and Lyft, Gov. Gavin Newsom and several state lawmakers are backing legislation that would allow rideshare drivers to unionize while lowering the insurance threshold for drivers.

The agreement, if approved, would allow hundreds of thousands of rideshare drivers to form unions and bargain collectively while still being classified as gig workers, according to supporters ahead of Friday’s vote in Sacramento.

The union-backed Assembly Bill 1340, sponsored by Assemblymembers Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, and Marc Berman, D-Menlo Park, would establish the framework for more than 800,000 rideshare drivers statewide to unionize and negotiate for higher wages, health benefits and workplace rights.

Tia Orr, executive director of labor union SEIU California, said that building a “wor

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