Lyft and Uber Settlement

 If you drive for Lyft and Uber in New York state, you will receive guaranteed paid sick leave as follows:

• For each 30 hours you work, you earn one hour of sick pay. 
• Your hours begin when you accept a trip, and end when you complete a ride.
• You can earn up to 56 hours of sick time per year. 
• This sick-leave benefit begins no later than February 29, 2024.
• Your sick-leave pay depends on whether your drive starts inside or outside the New York City metropolitan area (NYC):
  • If your trip is covered by the minimum-driver-pay rules of the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC), you will receive $17 per hour. This hourly rate increases to $17.25 on March 2, 2024, and $17.51 on June 2, 2024. This rate will increase annually for inflation, starting March 2, 2025. 
  • If your trip is not covered by the TLC rules, you will receive $26 per hour. This hourly rate increases to $26.39 on March 2, 2024, and $26.78 on June 2, 2024. This rate will increase annually for inflation, starting March 2, 2025. 

For drives outside NYC that are not subject to TLC rules, you will be paid a minimum hourly rate:

• Your hours begin when you accept a trip, and end when you complete a ride.
• This hourly rate will begin no later than February 29, 2024, at $26.
• This rate increases to $26.39 on March 2, 2024, and to $26.78 on June 2, 2024. After that, the rate will increase annually for inflation starting March 2, 2025. 

For up to one hour of required training that you complete, you will receive the higher of the following: 

• $15 per hour
• the lowest minimum wage

Lyft and Uber will provide the following information and documents:

• a new hiring notice that explains the earnings you should receive
• statements that show how much you earned for each pay period
• a notification of how much a rider has paid for each ride

Lyft: By November 1, 2024, Lyft will provide chat support for drivers on its app in English, Spanish, and Canadian French. 

Uber: By November 1, 2024, Uber will provide chat support for drivers on its app in English, Spanish, French, Russian, Bengali, and Chinese.

If Lyft or Uber deactivates you (drops you from its service) for any reason, you will be able to appeal the decision.   

An outside company, Rust Consulting, is managing the settlement. It will:

• send notices to affected drivers
• process driver payments
• answer questions about settlement specifics 

Visit Rust Consulting’s Lyft settlement page

Visit Rust Consulting’s Uber settlement page

Contact them:

Lyft toll-free number: 1-800-433-5314

Uber toll-free number: 1-800-625-2332

Lyft and Uber agreed to a settlement with the Office of the New York State Attorney General (OAG) after OAG’s multi-year investigation into both companies. 

The Lyft settlement does two things:

• It creates a fund for Lyft drivers who drove in New York between October 11, 2015, and July 31, 2017, and who had deductions for New York sales tax and Black Car Fund fees.
• It also provides new benefits to all current Lyft drivers. These benefits will be available through the Lyft app.

The Uber settlement does two things:

• It creates a fund for Uber drivers who drove in New York between November 10, 2014 through May 22, 2017, and who had deductions for New York sales tax and Black Car Fund fees.
• It also provides new benefits to all current Uber drivers. These benefits will be available through the Uber app.

For more details on the settlement, read the Assurance of Discontinuance (AOD).

To file a claim:

• Visit Rust Consulting Lyft site
• Visit Rust Consulting Uber site

This is an outside company that is handling the details of the settlement. 

For Lyft drivers:

If you completed at least one trip using the Lyft app between October 11, 2015, and July 31, 2017, you may qualify. See paragraph 21 of the AOD.

For Uber drivers:

If you completed at least one trip using the Uber app between November 10, 2014 through May 22, 2017, you may qualify.  See paragraph 22 of the AOD.

The Attorney General is working with Lyft and Uber to create a list of drivers who may qualify. If you think you qualify, file a claim online with the settlement administrator, Rust Consulting:

• Visit Rust Consulting Lyft site
• Visit Rust Consulting Uber site

For Lyft drivers:

You will be able to file a claim online beginning no later than March 1, 2024. The settlement fund should be fully funded by November 2025. Distributions will be made through 2025. 

For Uber drivers:

You will be able to file a claim online beginning no later than March 1, 2024.

If you currently drive for Lyft or Uber in New York, your benefits will start no later than February 29, 2024. These benefits include:

• guaranteed paid sick leave (see next section for details)
• if you drive outside New York City (NYC), a minimum of $26 per hour
• new documents that explain your earnings:
  • hiring notices will explain the earnings you are entitled to.
  • earnings statements will explain how much you are paid per pay period.
• payment for up to one hour you spend completing required training
• in-app chat support for Lyft in English, Spanish, and Canadian French
• in-app chat support for Uber in English, Spanish, French, Russian, Bengali, and Chinese
• ability to appeal any deactivation from Lyft or Uber 
• notifications from Lyft or Uber about how much a rider has paid after each ride

You earn one hour of sick pay for each 30 hours of work. You can earn a maximum of 56 hours of sick time per year. 

Here is how your work hours are counted: They begin when you accept a rider’s request in the Lyft or Uber driver app, and end when you drop the rider off at their destination. 

The amount you earn for sick time depends on whether your ride begins inside or outside New York City (NYC) and is covered by the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission’s (TLC) rules for minimum driver pay:

• For rides that begin inside NYC, you earn sick leave at $17 per hour. This rate will increase to $17.25 on March 2, 2024, and to $17.56 on June 2, 2024. 
• For rides that begin outside NYC, you earn sick leave at the higher of the following: your average hourly earnings (based on your hourly earnings for the previous three months), or $26 per hour. The $26 hourly rate will increase for inflation to $26.39 on March 1, 2024, and to $26.78 on June 1, 2024. 
• For all rides in New York state, your sick-leave rate will increase for inflation each year, beginning on March 2, 2025. This increase will be the lower of:
  • three percent 
  • the average inflation for the previous calendar year, according to the consumer price index for urban wage earners and clerical workers (the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ CPI-W) for the New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania metropolitan area

Lyft and Uber are updating their driver apps to manage your sick leave. You will be able to see how much sick leave you have, as well as claim paid sick leave. 

The laws of New York state and NYC allow you to use sick leave after you have requested it from Lyft or Uber. You can make your request verbally or in writing. You can use it if any of the following reasons. These reasons can affect you directly, or affect a family member you are caring for or helping to care for. 

You can request sick leave for: 

• mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition. You do not have to have a diagnosis or require medical care when you request leave
• diagnosis, care, or treatment of a mental or physical illness, injury, or health condition; or a need for medical diagnosis or preventive care  

You can request safe leave for absence from work when you or your family member has been the victim of domestic violence. This domestic violence can involve a family offense (an offense involving a family member), sexual offense, stalking, or human trafficking. You can request safe leave to do any of the following:

• get help from a domestic-violence shelter, rape crisis center, or other services program
• participate in safety planning, relocate temporarily or permanently, or take other action to increase your or a family member’s safety
• meet with an attorney or other social-services provider to get information and advice, prepare for, or participate in a criminal or civil case
• file a complaint or domestic-incident report with law enforcement
• meet with a district attorney’s office
• enroll your children, or a family member’s children, in a new school
• take other action to protect the health or safety of you or your family member, or to protect your friends or coworkers

Read more about paid sick leave:

• New York state government site 
• NYC government site  

This benefit is for rides in New York state that are not covered by the TLC’s minimum-driver-pay rules. It ensures that Lyft will pay you a minimum of $26 per hour. Here are some important points:

• Lyft or Uber will decide on an “earnings period” of no more than 14 consecutive days. This is your pay period. 
• Lyft or Uber uses an “earnings floor” to make sure you are paid enough. This earnings floor starts at $26 per hour. It will increase for inflation to $26.39 on March 2, 2024, and to $26.78 on June 2, 2024. After that, it will increase annually for inflation, beginning March 2, 2025. This annual increase will be the lower of the following:
  • three percent 
  • the average inflation rate for the previous calendar year, according to the CPI-W for the New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania area 
• For each earnings period, Lyft or Uber compares how much you have earned against the earnings floor. If you earned less than the earnings floor, Lyft or Uber pays you the difference between your actual earnings and the earnings floor. Lyft or Uber will pay you no later than the next earnings period. 

Lyft or Uber will pay you for up to one hour that you spent viewing and completing their required training materials. Lyft or Uber creates these materials and provides them to you. You will be paid the higher of the following:

• $15 per hour
• The lowest minimum-wage rate

Lyft and Uber will provide two new types of documents:

• a hiring notice that explains the earnings that you are entitled to
• earnings statements that show how much you have earned 

Within 24 hours after you complete a trip, Lyft or Uber will send you an electronic statement. This statement will be sent as an email, or will display in the Lyft or Uber driver apps or in the driver portal on Lyft or Uber's websites. The statement will show:

• the total amount of time you worked
• the total number of miles you drove for the trip
• the amount the rider paid for the trip 

By November 1, 2024, Lyft will offer in-app chat support for drivers in English, Spanish, and Canadian French.

By November 1, Uber will provide support for appealing deactivation in English, Spanish, French, Russian, Bengali, and Chinese.

You will be able to chat with live Lyft or Uber employees through the driver app. These employees will be familiar with Lyft or Uber policies and can provide you with accurate information. 

You will be able to appeal all Lyft or Uber decisions to deactivate you. You will be able to do this through the Lyft or Uber driver apps. 

Here are some of the deactivation reasons you can appeal:

• dangerous driving
• suspected impaired driving 
• interpersonal conflict
• wrong vehicle
• service-animal denial
• harassment
• sexual misconduct
• low ratings
• trip fraud

By November 1, 2024, Lyft will provide support for appealing deactivation in English, Spanish, and Canadian French. 

By November 1, 2024, Uber will provide support for appealing deactivation in English, Spanish, French, Russian, Bengali, and Chinese.