Uber loses appeal as top Swiss court rules company is an employer

ZURICH (Reuters) - Switzerland's top court upheld a ruling that ride-hailing company Uber should be treated as an employer, dismissing the company's attempt to overturn a Geneva court's verdict.

"According to the Federal Supreme Court, the cantonal court did not rule arbitrarily when it ruled that Uber drivers working in Geneva had an employment relationship with Uber BV. The Federal Supreme Court dismisses the corresponding appeal," it said in a media release on Friday accompanying the verdict.

The California-based company whose cab service has expanded worldwide stands accused in many countries of bypassing national labour protection standards and shunning collective negotiation with drivers who work on freelance terms.

In a separate ruling on food delivery service Uber Eats, the court upheld an appeal contesting whether the company was a recruitment service, as Geneva authorities had decided in 2019.

(Reporting by Michael Shields; Reporting by Susan Fenton)