This study of gig passenger and delivery driver earnings in the Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay, and Seattle metros finds the typical drivers earned less than the applicable minimum wage in all five metros.
Uber and Lyft, along with a group of delivery network companies, have filed a ballot proposition in Massachusetts to create a separate set of labor standards for their drivers. After considering multiple loopholes, we find that the majority of Massachusetts drivers could earn as little as the equivalent of a $4.82 wage, while the minority of drivers who qualify for a health care stipend could earn the equivalent of just $6.75 per hour.
Thornberg over-estimates driver gross earnings (before expenses) based on data that is not representative of drivers in California. He also underestimates driver costs. In doing so, he significantly overstates what drivers earn on net now, and would earn under Proposition 22.
In this data brief, we estimate how much Uber and Lyft would have contributed to the state’s Unemployment Insurance Fund between 2014 and 2019, had the companies classified the drivers as employees. Our finding: If Uber and Lyft had treated workers as employees, the two TNCs would have paid $413 million into the state’s Unemployment Insurance Fund between 2014 and 2019.
We examine here the Quality Standards Program, an innovative effort at San Francisco International Airport that addresses this key issue, and with favorable results. This program may provide a model for improved airport security and safety nationally.
San Diego is joining a growing movement of cities using local policies to counter rising income inequality and falling real wages.
In the face of congressional inaction, the debate on raising the minimum wage is moving to the local level. As more cities and counties consider setting their own wage standards, they can learn from the policy experiments already underway.
Cities across the country, from New York to Seattle, are moving aggressively to confront rising income inequality and falling real wages for low-paid workers. These cities can learn important lessons from San Francisco’s bold experiments over the last 15 years.
An unprecedented experiment in San Francisco shows that local policy can make a difference in the lives of low-wage workers- without hurting employment or economic growth.
