“We must take action to end what is effectively a sub-minimum wage for the most marginalized workers”

Broad coalition of community-based organizations endorse Pay Up campaign to raise pay & protect flexibility for gig workers

>>> Gig workers with Working Washington’s Pay Up campaign garner strong support for campaign to raise pay, protect flexibility, and provide transparency

Over the past year of stay-home orders, business stress, and economic insecurity, customers and workers alike have come to depend on the convenience and flexibility offered by gig economy apps like DoorDash, Instacart, and TaskRabbit. But at the same time as these companies are expanding rapidly and making their executives into billionaires, they’re getting away with paying as little as $2 a job to the people who do the work. Gig companies have been exploiting legal loopholes to establish what is effectively a sub-minimum wage for the most marginalized workers: those who rely on gig work, including people of color, immigrants, workers with disabilities, and single parents.

The immigrant rights, workers rights, and other community based organizations listed below have come together in support of Working Washington’s call for citywide labor standards that advance racial equity, improve public health, ensure an equitable recovery, and meet workers' needs with new rules for the gig economy that raise pay, protect flexibility, and provide transparency:

  • Amazon Employees for Climate Justice

  • Be: Seattle

  • Casa Latina

  • Civic Ventures

  • Complexiphy

  • Drivers Union

  • El Centro de la Raza

  • Fair Work Center

  • Kandelia

  • LGBTQ Allyship

  • National Employment Law Project

  • OneAmerica

  • Seattle Mutual Aid

  • Seattle Restaurants United

  • SEIU 775

  • SEIU Healthcare 1199NW

  • Teamsters 117

  • Transit Riders Union

  • Washington Low Income Housing Alliance

  • Working Washington

The full statement is below:

It's time for Seattle to make the gig economy pay up.

Tens of thousands of workers in our city depend on the flexibility promised by the gig economy. For many, gig work can be a lifeline, especially in an economy that doesn’t offer many other opportunities to earn an income right now.

But companies like DoorDash, Instacart, and TaskRabbit say that gig workers aren't protected by the same labor standards as other workers — and they're paying them less than minimum wage. So at the same time as these gig companies are expanding rapidly and making their executives into billionaires, they’re getting away with paying as little as $2 a job to the people who do the work.

It doesn’t have to be this way. Last year the city passed emergency hazard pay and sick days laws for many gig workers, and earlier this year a new law took effect raising pay for Uber/Lyft drivers. Now it’s time to pass permanent policies that lift up all gig workers.

We must take action to end what is effectively a sub-minimum wage for the most marginalized workers: those who rely on gig work, including people of color, immigrants, workers with disabilities, and parents. We sign on in support of gig workers’ campaign for citywide labor standards that advance racial equity, improve public health, and meet workers' needs with new rules for the gig economy that:

  • Raise pay by establishing a pay floor for each job which guarantees workers make more than minimum wage after expenses, with tips on top.

  • Protect flexibility by ensuring gig workers can choose when to work and which jobs to accept.

  • Provide transparency by giving workers and customers clear information about prices and pay rates.

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