Uber and Lyft Pay $328 Million to Settle Charges They Stole Wages from Drivers

Ride-sharing giants Uber and Lyft have agreed to pay $328 million to settle charges that they withheld wages due to drivers in New York. The Silicon Valley gig economy darlings also agreed to change their pay practices for drivers moving forward.

ABC News reports that Uber and Lyft have consented to a combined settlement of $328 million. This settlement addresses the long-standing issue of withheld wages from drivers, a practice that has been under scrutiny for years.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 24: Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO, UBER, speaks onstage during the 2019 Concordia Annual Summit – Day 2 at Grand Hyatt New York on September 24, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Riccardo Savi/Getty Images for Concordia Summit)

Lyft co-founders John Zimmer, left, and Logan Green speak before they ring a ceremonial opening bell in Los Angeles on March 29, 2019. The Lyft co-founders are relinquishing their leadership roles in an announcement Monday, March 27, 2023, to make way for a former Amazon executive as the ride-hailing service struggles to recover from the pandemic while long-time rival Uber has been regaining its momentum. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu, File)

The settlement was spearheaded by New York Attorney General Letitia James, who called it the “largest wage-theft settlement” ever secured by her office. The agreement mandates that the two companies compensate drivers with back pay and additional benefits, including mandatory paid sick leave.

Drivers who have been affected by the wage deductions are now eligible to file claims to recover their lost earnings. “These drivers overwhelmingly come from immigrant communities and rely on these jobs to provide for their families,” stated Attorney General James, emphasizing the significance of the settlement for the drivers and their dependents.

The issue at the heart of the settlement is the improper deductions from drivers’ earnings by both companies. Uber, which agreed to pay the lion’s share of $290 million, deducted sales taxes and Black Car Fund fees from drivers’ payments between 2014 and 2017. These costs, according to the law, should have been covered by passengers. Lyft, contributing $38 million to the settlement, engaged in similar practices from 2015 to 2017.

In addition to the financial compensation, the settlement introduces an “earnings floor,” guaranteeing a minimum hourly wage for drivers across the state, with those outside New York City assured a minimum of $26 per hour. Furthermore, drivers will now accrue paid sick leave, earning one hour of sick time for every 30 hours worked, up to a maximum of 56 hours per year.

Uber and Lyft are both notorious for their extreme leftist bias, considered commonplace in Silicon Valley. But for all of their progressive stands, stealing wages from drivers is just the tip of the iceberg. Breitbart News reported in May that Uber placed its diversity chief on leave after woke employees were offended by her joke:

The New York Times reports that Bo Young Lee, the head of diversity, equity, and inclusion at Uber, has been temporarily placed on leave due to complaints about an event she moderated that some staff members felt was insensitive to minorities. Lee, herself an asian woman, is the latest executive to draw the ire of the woke mob they played a role in creating.

Employees expressed concern that the focus on the derogatory implications of the term “Karen” detracted from what the woke mob believes are more significant issues of systemic racism during an event that was open to the entire company and intended to discuss the experiences of white women and the “Karen” stereotype.