The New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission (TLC) announced it is proposing to address inflation and make changes to the way Uber and Lyft calculate drivers’ pay to increase drivers earnings, according to media outlet, BNN Bloomberg. The city says it is trying to close a loophole Uber and Lyft “have used to deny drivers millions of dollars in pay, with a raft of new measures that would effectively raise their rates by roughly 6.1%.”
Utilization rates are arrived at by dividing the amount of time a driver spends with a passenger by the total amount of time they’re available to accept a new fare. The TLC, which is accepting comments at its Feb. 5 hearing, plans to change its minimum pay formulas for Uber and Lyft drivers after a Bloomberg investigation seemed to show the companies systematically locked drivers out of their platforms to game those calculations and withhold millions in driver pay. (Watch the hearing at https://www.nyc.gov/site/tlc/about/commission-meetings.page.) The TLC said the lockouts have prevented drivers from “working and earning the daily income they were expecting to earn” and are “in clear conflict with the intent of local law.”
Uber and Lyft have warned that the costs will be passed onto consumers. In November, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi told investors the company has seen a slowdown in rides because of higher insurance costs being passed onto riders.
At the Feb. hearing, the TLC is also proposing a new rule that would require Uber and Lyft to give 72-hour advance notice to drivers if they intend to lock them out so they have “reasonable expectations of their working hours and incomes.”
Uber spokesperson Freddi Goldstein says the company is considering all options, including litigation, to fight the plan. Lyft said the city’s proposal won’t rule out future lockouts, as long as utilization rates play a role in calculating driver pay.
Source: BNN Bloomberg
