Prospective Ballot Initiative Impacting App-Based Drivers
Do you live in Massachusetts? Have you ever hailed a ride or had food delivered to you via a mobile app? If you answered yes to both of those questions, you might want to tune in.
Flexibility & Benefits for Massachusetts Drivers is leading a campaign to bring a new question to the ballot this November that could affirmatively characterize app-based drivers as independent contractors rather than employees. To date, Uber, Lyft, Instacart, and DoorDash have funded their Massachusetts PACs (“Flexibility and Benefits for Massachusetts Drivers” & “Flexibility and Benefits for Massachusetts Drivers 2024“) driving the ballot initiative with net contributions of $26.5M. This follows similar propositions in Austin, Texas and California, where the same companies (+ Postmates) spent hundreds of millions of dollars.
The proposed ballot initiative in Massachusetts would:
- Require guaranteed compensation for drivers equal to 120% of the state minimum wage for time spent while completing requests
- Reimburse drivers per mile at an inflation-adjusted rate (starting at $0.26/mile)
- Provide drivers with mandatory safety training and accident insurance
- Make drivers eligible to take medical or family leave
- Enable drivers to accrue 1 hour of sick time for every 30 hours spent completing requests
Massachusetts courts are currently hearing challenges to the initiative from labor groups that may prevent it from appearing on the ballot. In the meantime, stay tuned, and ask your drivers what they think!
