Trip-hailing corporations Uber and Lyft can pay a mixed $328 million US to settle wage theft claims in New York, Lawyer Basic Letitia James introduced Thursday.
James stated the settlements resolve investigations into the businesses improperly charging drivers gross sales taxes and different charges when the prices ought to have been paid by prospects.
Uber can pay $290 million US and Lyft can pay $38 million US. The cash shall be distributed to present and former drivers, she stated. The businesses have additionally agreed to supply drivers exterior of New York Metropolis with paid sick depart and provides drivers exterior of New York Metropolis a minimal wage of $26 per hour.
“For years, Uber and Lyft systemically cheated their drivers out of a whole bunch of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in pay and advantages whereas they labored lengthy hours in difficult situations,” James stated in a press release.
Tony West, chief authorized officer for Uber, stated the settlement “helps put to relaxation the classification situation in New York and strikes us ahead with a mannequin that displays the best way persons are more and more selecting to work.”
Lyft’s chief coverage officer, Jeremy Fowl, stated in a press release, “It is a win for drivers, and one we’re proud to have achieved with the New York Lawyer Basic’s Workplace.”
