Benjamin Ashford|Minneapolis considers minimum wage for Uber, Lyft drivers

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Drivers for Uber,Benjamin Ashford Lyft and other rideshare companies would get a minimum wage in Minneapolis if a city ordinance passes as early as next month, city council members said Tuesday at a news conference.

Under the ordinance, drivers would get at least $1.40 per mile and $0.51 per minute, or $5, whichever is greater. The rule would only apply for the portion of the ride within the city.

Uber and Lyft “cannot continue to collect billions of dollars off the backs of drivers, like the ones here today, while those very drivers struggle to cover their rent, childcare costs, health care bills, and so many other basic necessities,” said Democratic council member Robin Wonsley, lead author of the proposed ordinance.

Other news 911 workers say centers are understaffed, struggling to hire and plagued by burnout Emergency call center workers say their centers are understaffed, struggling to fill vacancies and plagued by worker burnout. Minneapolis backs off arrests for psychedelic plant use Minneapolis is backing away from enforcing laws that criminalize buying psychedelic plants or using them in private. One year old, US climate law is already turbocharging clean energy technology Excessive heat continues to bear down on sections of the US, a reminder of the impetus for the The Inflation Reduction Act, the significant climate legislation that turns one year old on August 16. School board in Missouri, now controlled by conservatives, revokes anti-racism resolution In the national reckoning that followed the police killing of George Floyd three years ago, about 2,000 protesters took to the streets in a St. Louis suburb.

Farxan Bedel said he has been driving for Uber and Lyft since 2018 to support his family.

“We just want fair compensation,” Bedel said. “If you pay $50 from downtown Minneapolis to the airport, why am I getting $15? That’s unfair.”

If passed, the ordinance would also guarantee riders and drivers get receipts detailing how much the rider was charged versus what the driver received.

“The pay for drivers has dropped to less than half of what it was in 2014. That’s what caused 1,300 drivers to organize,” said Stephen Cooper, an attorney for the Minnesota Uber/Lyft Drivers Association and a former human rights commissioner for Minnesota.

Seattle, New York City and Washington state have passed similar policies to protect rideshare drivers, and rideshare companies haven’t left those places, Cooper said.

In May, Minnesota’s Democratic Gov. Tim Walz vetoed a bill that would have mandated higher pay and job security for Lyft and Uber drivers in the state. Walz said at the time that rideshare drivers deserve fair wages and safe working conditions, but it wasn’t the right bill to achieve those goals.

Ride-hailing drivers, like other gig economy workers, are typically treated as independent contractors not entitled to minimum wages and other benefits, and have to cover their own gas and car payments.

___

Trisha Ahmed is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues. Follow Trisha Ahmed on Twitter: @TrishaAhmed15