Not that it wants to provide benefits  itself, but Uber—known for classifying its drivers as independent contractors, thus ineligible for employee benefits—has come out in favor of the creation of a whole new “portable benefits” system. To be created by the state of Washington, that is. Not Uber.

Related: Is Uber the next health-care disruptor?

Geek Wire reports that Uber’s new CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, has coauthored an open letter with Seattle investor and workers’ rights advocate Nick Hanauer and David Rolf, president of the SEIU 775 labor union, that urges the state to put together a system for the non-employees of companies such as Uber that makes it possible for them to have a benefits package that would go with them as they move from job to job.

The gig economy and the so-called sharing economy both make it possible for people to find paying work even if they can’t find a regular job or need additional income beyond whatever their other work arrangements may be.

But the companies that provide the framework for that work, such as Uber, distance themselves from the people who work for them providing car rides, food delivery and other services. As employees, those workers would be entitled to employee benefits; as gig workers, contract workers or freelancers, they’re not, and that leaves them without the safety net that traditional employment has provided for decades.

But the odd-couple letter urges the state to step in where employers fear to tread. In part, it says, “The American social safety system, which was designed in the 20th century for a very different economy, has not kept pace with today’s workforce. At a basic level, everyone should have the ability to protect themselves and their loved ones when they’re injured at work, get sick, or when it’s time to retire.”

Washington—the state, not the capital—has been progressive enough to boost laws that favor workers, so it’s a possibility that change could start there on benefits as well. Already, the state has passed one of the most generous paid family leave policies in the country, and back in 2015, Seattle pushed through a landmark law allowing Uber drivers to unionize—even though that one is mired in court cases at present.

In addition, says the report, “This month, Washington legislators introduced a bill in the state House that would extend benefits coverage to contract workers. If enacted, the bill would require companies to contribute funds to an outside benefits provider based on services rendered by contract workers. The providers would offer benefits, like health insurance, industrial insurance, paid time off, and retirement, to non-employed workers.”

Of course, considering Uber’s history, its motives and involvement in such advocacy are suspect. The report highlights Heidi Groover of The Stranger as questioning whether the letter is just another possible avenue by which Uber could escape classifying its drivers as employees.