NYC sets $17 an hour minimum wage for Uber and Lyft drivers
NYC sets $17 an hour minimum wage for Uber and Lyft
drivers
By IRINA IVANOVA MONEYWATCH December 4, 2018, 3:46 PM
New York City has become the first in the U.S. to set a
minimum wage for app-based car services. The city's Taxi and Limousine
Commission voted Tuesday to establish a per-minute and per-mile payment formula
for Uber, Lyft, Via, Juno and Gett that is supposed to result in drivers
earning $17.22 an hour. Regulators say it will raise drivers' annual earnings
by $10,000 a year.
"New York City is once again passing landmark
regulation to protect workers in the unruly gig economy," the New York
Taxi Workers Alliance said in a statement.
The city's minimum wage is set to increase to $15 an hour
at the end of this year. The equivalent wage for drivers, who are considered
independent contractors and have to cover their own expenses, is $17.22.
The rules are based on a proposal developed by economist
James Parrott, fiscal policy director of the Center for New York City Affairs
at The New School, that adjusts how much drivers are paid based on how much
work they're getting each hour. A report Parrott co-authored this summer found
that most ride-hail drivers earn less than $17.22 an hour.
Uber spokesman Jason Post told the Associated Press the
rules "will lead to higher than necessary costs for riders." But taxi
commission head Meera Joshi said she believes New Yorkers are willing to pay a
little more so that drivers "are able to provide for themselves and their
families."
Traditional taxi drivers in New York, who operate under a
different set of city rules, already make or exceed $17.22 on average,
according to Joshi's commission.
In August, New York voted to freeze new licenses for car
services for one year while it studies their effect on the economy.
-- The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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