The delivery workers of the Big Apple celebrate a great victory after years of struggles. The New York State Supreme Court ruled in favor of the City to allow a minimum wage for restaurant delivery workers who make deliveries for Uber, DoorDash and Grubhub.
But this ruling does not mean that technology companies will give up other legal actions and procedures, reasoning that in their “numbers” the new salary will impact customers’ pockets. And it will leave thousands of delivery workers out of work.
The court’s firm order is that this workforce will earn at least $17.96 per hour, increasing to $19.96 per hour when fully implemented in 2025, adjusted annually for inflation.
On June 11, 2023, the city government announced the final minimum wage rule, following a month-long rulemaking process that included two public hearings and thousands of public comments. But in July, DoorDash, UberEats, Grubhub and Relay sued the city to stop the minimum payment rate from going into effect.
“We are glad the court made this decision and are grateful for the tireless advocacy of so many delivery drivers who fought hard to make this a reality. Like all workers, they deserve a fair wage,” reacted Vilda Vera Mayuga, commissioner of the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP).
In September 2021, the New York City Council passed Local Law 115, which requires DCWP to study the wages and working conditions of app-based restaurant delivery workers and establish a minimum pay rate for their work based on in the results of several studies.
The City will continue to conduct outreach and education activities for these workers about the new minimum pay rate and all their rights under the laws.
“Now that the preliminary injunction has been denied, thousands of delivery drivers will finally receive the raises they have been entitled to for almost 10 months,” said Comptroller Brad Lander.
Companies resist
The first reaction from spokespersons for the technological platforms is that they will continue fighting from other legal sides. They agree that they would be forced to pass the cost of higher wages onto consumers by raising prices.
Meanwhile, they argue that the city’s wage model does not correctly calculate the degree to which higher prices would hurt local, smaller restaurants.
In their list of complaints, they define that the new system would harm delivery people because companies, to control costs, would have to strictly control how much time workers spent on the applications, but without making deliveries.
In his decision, the judge rejected these arguments and said workers could still have flexible arrangements, while earning a minimum wage.
“Higher pay, including on-call time, need not be mutually exclusive with worker flexibility, and it is not unreasonable to pursue both goals simultaneously,” he wrote.
For his part, Josh Gold, an Uber spokesperson, told local media that the mandate would ultimately harm delivery workers.
“The City continues to lie to workers and the public. “This law will put thousands of New Yorkers out of work and force this workforce to compete fiercely with each other to deliver orders faster,” he assured.
A Grubhub spokesperson also called the decision “disappointing” and noted that they will not stop their legal actions: “We remain confident in our legal position and firmly believe that the rule, although well-intentioned, is the result of a flawed regulatory process that was not implemented. “consistently applied to the food delivery industry.”
Tools for delivery people:
- Delivery drivers, apps, restaurants, and consumers can visit nyc.gov/DeliveryApps for information on the minimum pay rate, multilingual resources, and information on city laws for delivery drivers.
- Workers can also call 311 and ask for “delivery worker” or visit nyc.gov/workers to request more information or file a complaint.