The nation’s first minimum-wage standard for app-based delivery workers was signed, sealed, and delivered this week as the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) issued a final rule on the minimum pay rate for the city’s 60,000+ workers.
Effective July 12, workers who previously made an average of $7.09 an hour, will receive an hourly wage of $17.96, increasing to $18.96 on April 1, 2024, and $19.96 one year later. Apps that pay workers for the time waiting for a trip and trip time must pay $0.30 per minute, while those solely paying for trip time but pay at least $0.50 per minute. Apps are able to pay workers per hour, per trip, or create their own formulas, as long as they are paid the minimum rate.
- The standard comes after the 2021 passage of Local Law 115 requiring the DCWP to evaluate delivery app workers’ pay and working conditions and establish a minimum pay rate.
Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement the new rate “will guarantee these workers and their families can earn a living, access greater economic stability, and help keep our city’s legendary restaurant industry thriving.” The Adams administration is also working with labor group Los Deliveristas Unidos, who have championed a minimum wage standard, to turn empty newsstands into hubs for delivery workers.
Wage gap: The top delivery apps have pushed back against the standard. DoorDash released a statement saying it would explore litigation, calling the rule “deeply misguided” and “ill-considered.” The company said to meet this pay rate, it would have to raise order costs and cut service in the city, which it believes would lead to fewer opportunities for Dashers and less business for restaurants.
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Grubhub spokesperson Liza Dee said the company was “disappointed” in the city’s decision, while UberEats spokesperson Josh Gold claimed the city isn’t “being honest with delivery workers” and is “telling apps: eliminate jobs, discourage tipping, force couriers to go faster and accept more trips—that’s how you’ll pay for this.”
Part and parcel: Delivery workers for UPS are also looking to improve wages and working conditions. The Teamsters union last week began holding a strike authorization vote among its 340,000 UPS worker members. The union could go on strike if the vote is authorized and the two parties can't agree to a new contract before the current one expires on August 1. The results of the vote will be announced on July 16.
The union today said it reached a tentative deal with UPS over one of its top asks: adding air conditioning to delivery vans. At least 143 UPS workers have sustained injuries related to severe heat or dehydration since 2015, per OSHA data cited by the Washington Post.
Teamster president Sean O’Brien told CNN that tentative agreements around two dozen issues have been reached, though many issues remain.
UPS CEO Carol Tomé said in its first quarter earnings call in April that the company has established five subcommittees to tackle key contract areas to help negotiations move more quickly, and she remains “confident that a win-win-win contract is very achievable.”