2022: Calculating how much was stolen and sending postcards to the Attorney General!
From 2022
HOW UBER AND LYFT STOLE THOUSANDS IN WAGES:
Since 2016, NYTWA has fought to win back the monies Uber and Lyft took from drivers for the cost of the sales tax and Black Car Fund surcharge— for many drivers, this totals thousands of dollars for each year from 2013 until 2017. For years, Uber took both tax and the Black Car Fund surcharge out of the driver’s share of each fare. Lyft also took out two deductions from every fare, that were exactly the same amount of the tax and BCF surcharge (8.875% and 2.5%). Unlike Uber, though, Lyft misrepresented what these deductions were for. After the press covered Uber and Lyft’s deductions, Lyft changed its payment practices, and then altered driver records, to make it look like Lyft had never taken separate 8.875% and 2.5% deductions from driver pay.
HOW UBER AND LYFT TRY TO GET AWAY WITH IT:
The law and the contracts did not allow for the companies to take tax out of drivers’ pay from each fare. Uber and Lyft have largely gotten away with this wage theft so far by using forced arbitration to limit drivers’ ability to come together and recover the money in court.
Uber and Lyft also misclassified drivers as independent contractors, attempting to deny them the protections of state labor law that protect workers from wage theft, and provide for double payback of stolen wages.
While our members’ lawsuits continue to challenge whether the companies are allowed to force drivers into arbitration, drivers should not have to wait a day longer for the stolen income!
The New York State Attorney General can stop the abuses and win back the money for all drivers.
HOW NYTWA HAS FOUGHT FOR DRIVERS STOLEN WAGES:
2015: NYTWA file complaint about the wage theft with Governor’s Office and state Attorney General. No action is taken. The practice continues.
2016: NYTWA and members sue Uber for wage theft.
2017: 12 days after one of our filings in court describes how the law says taxes can’t be included in the fare, Uber announces it “made a mistake” and starts to give back to drivers a smaller amount took out charging commission on the tax and surcharge. The New York Times reported on our lawsuit and how the money was being deducted. Uber drivers are still owed the rest of the money it took out for the actual cost of tax and surcharge. Drivers who signed out of arbitration, and so had the right to participate in a lawsuit, later win settlements. But the majority of drivers have been unable to get back the money because they did not sign out of arbitration.
2019 and 2020: NYTWA members sue Uber and Lyft to challenge arbitration and win back monies for all drivers.