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SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The California Trucking Association on Nov. 12 filed what appears to be the first lawsuit challenging a sweeping new labor law that seeks to give wage and benefit protections to workers in the so-called gig economy, including rideshare drivers at companies such as Uber and Lyft.

The New Jersey Department of Labor and U.S. Department of Labor signed a joint agreement to step up efforts to protect employees, including truck drivers, from illegal misclassification as independent contractors.

Legislation has passed in California’s State Assembly that would mandate use of the so-called “ABC test” that legal experts say makes it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for motor carriers to use independent contractors.

Whether truck drivers are classified as employees or independent contractors is becoming an increasingly difficult challenge for many motor carriers when it comes to workers’ compensation and other insurance coverages, industry experts said.

In a federal lawsuit filed July 19, the Western States Trucking Association alleges that the California Supreme Court’s new “ABC test” requirement for deciding if a contractor should be an employee “forces virtually all independent contractors to become employees to those they choose to contract or work with.”