New legislation under consideration by the Seattle City Council aims to improve wages and job standards for gig workers at services like Instacart, DoorDash, TaskRabbit and Uber Eats. The legislation was introduced this week and showcased at a press event Thursday featuring gig workers talking about their working conditions.
The event was sponsored by the PayUp campaign, a Seattle-based gig workers’ rights group that is part of Working Washington, a statewide workers organization.
“It is imperative that we close these loopholes companies are already abusing to undermine the last 100 years of U.S. labor laws,” DoorDash driver Michael Pullman and PayUp volunteer said at the event.
The legislation would increase pay and introduce standards for job transparency and flexibility for delivery drivers and other gig workers. Councilmembers Lisa Herbold and Andrew Lewis are sponsors of the proposed ordinance, which would establish the following labor standards:
- A pay floor of at least Seattle’s minimum wage, at $15 per every hour worked, plus reasonable expenses. All tips would go to workers.
- Transparent job and pay information. Companies would provide app-based workers with pay data within 24 hours, and on a weekly basis.
- Flexibility “in choosing when to work and which offers to accept, reject, or cancel with cause.” Companies would not be able to penalize workers for carrying out such actions.
The legislation is part of ongoing efforts to strengthen worker protections for gig workers. In March, Washington state legislators approved legislation that sets a minimum wage and other benefits for Lyft and Uber drivers.
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