Drivers working for Bolt, the ride-hailing app operator, are seeking to be classed as workers rather than self-employed contractors at an employment tribunal.

More than 12,500 drivers, who are represented by the law firm Leigh Day, are bringing the action against Bolt, an Estonia-based ride-hailing app which has been operating in the UK since 2019.

The drivers claim they should be treated as workers because of the significant control Bolt has over how they work, and say they should be given the same rights and protections as typical workers.

The high-profile employment rights case, which begins in central London on Wednesday, comes as the new Labour government prepares to draw up its plans to strengthen workers’ rights in legislation.

In the UK there are two types of employment status: employees and workers, both entitled to holiday pay and minimum wage. However, employees enjoy much broader rights, such as being able to sue for unfair dismissal. Independent contractors do not have any of these rights.

The litigation against Bolt comes three years after its rival Uber lost a landmark case at the UK’s supreme court which found that Uber drivers were workers, rather than being self-employed, and so were entitled to rights such as the minimum wage.

Companies operating in the gig economy have been under pressure since then to improve pay and conditions for drivers and couriers.

Charlotte Pettman, an associate solicitor at Leigh Day, said eight drivers were due to testify at the hearings. “This is one of the biggest cases of its kind in recent years,” she said.

“Over the next three weeks, the employment tribunal will hear about the Bolt drivers’ working conditions and decide whether they are workers and entitled to compensation for unpaid holiday pay and shortfalls to the “national living wage”.”

Bolt, which does not class the drivers as workers, announced as of 1 August its drivers would receive holiday pay and a guarantee of the “national living wage”. As of April 2023, there were an estimated 100,000 Bolt drivers in the UK working in cities including Manchester and London.

Leigh Day, which is representing the drivers on a “no win, no fee” agreement, will argue that the way Bolt is calculating these payments is not compliant with current legislation, and has said this means they are not entitled to compensation for previous unpaid holiday or shortfalls to the national living wage – which the drivers are claiming as part of the lawsuit.

Bolt said that its business model “enables drivers to be their own boss, and the majority of private-hire drivers consistently state that they wish to remain self-employed independent contractors, as they value the flexibility, personal control over pricing, and earning potential offered by this model”.

The company said that, in its recent survey, six in 10 drivers identified the ability to choose their own hours as the most important aspect of their work.

The Labour government has yet to lay out the details of its employment rights legislation, but the new measures are expected to include a ban on exploitative zero-hours contracts, ending “fire and rehire” practices, and introducing basic employment rights from day one in a job.

Other expected reforms include repealing anti-trade union legislation introduced by the last government, and creating a single enforcement body to ensure employment rights are being upheld.

Hopes of a plan to bring in a single status for all employees, which would give gig economy workers the same rights as employed staff, appear to have been replaced with a pledge to consult on a simpler employment framework.

Business leaders have raised concerns about some of the proposals such as the right for workers to disconnect from work or answer emails outside working hours. Union officials are also watching closely for any signs that the measures are being diluted or delayed, but most remain supportive of the plans.