Nearly $4.4 million will be returned to more than 14,000 Uber Eats workers in Seattle after the company agreed to settle allegations that it violated the city’s
Nearly $4.4 million will be returned to more than 14,000 Uber Eats workers in Seattle after the company agreed to settle allegations that it violated the city’s App-Based Worker Minimum Payment Ordinance.
Mayor Katie Wilson announced on Tuesday that the Seattle Office of Labor Standards reached its second-largest settlement with Portier, LLC, doing business as Uber Eats, over alleged violations of the ordinance.
Uber Eats agreed to pay a total of $4,386,682.28 in back pay, interest, liquidated damages, and civil penalties to 14,421 affected workers, along with $5,982.90 in fines to the City of Seattle.
Under the ordinance, the Office of Labor Standards alleged Uber Eats failed to consistently provide minimum payments for canceled orders when required, including cases in which workers went to a pick-up location and reported to Uber Eats that an order needed to be canceled for cause. The office also claimed that in some instances Uber Eats did not provide workers with the required minimum payments for the time they worked.
“Seattle works hard to protect workers’ rights, and this multi-million-dollar settlement shows the impact,” Wilson said. “By enforcing workplace rights, including in the rapidly growing industry of app-based work, we hold large companies accountable. This is a win for the workers who are a critical part of our local economy and for Seattle as an equitable city for everyone who works, lives and visits here.”
OLS Director Steven Marchese said the settlement followed additional complaints after an earlier resolution involving Uber Eats.
“Last summer, OLS resolved an investigation into Uber Eats that required the company to pay over $1.4 million to more than 4,000 workers for alleged violations of the App-Based Worker Minimum Payment Ordinance. After the settlement, workers continued to contact our office alleging the company was still violating the ordinance. Upon further investigation, OLS found additional violations,” Marchese said.
“The law is clear - Uber Eats should have paid workers the money it owed them because of cancelled orders, as well as when some of the work occurred inside Seattle. This settlement is about fairness and accountability. We want to send a clear message to all network companies operating in Seattle, including Uber Eats, that we will enforce the law to ensure workers receive every dollar they’ve earned.”
The Office of Labor Standards said its previous settlement with Uber Eats involved allegations under both the minimum payment ordinance and the city’s Independent Contractor Protections Ordinance. That earlier settlement was the largest in OLS history at $15 million and involved more than 16,000 workers.
The office said about 35,000 workers overall drive for Uber Eats in Seattle.
