Uber, DoorDash, and GrubHub want to stop the salary requirements for delivery workers in New York City.

A food delivery worker bikes through Times Square in New York City on Dec. 29, 2021. Four food delivery companies sued the city Thursday to stop its new minimum wage law for gig workers. (Source: Getty Image)

Food Delivery Services Requesting Restraining Order on the Pay Rate Requirement due to New Minimum Wage Law

Several food delivery businesses are suing New York City to overturn the city’s recent statute mandating a minimum wage of $17.96 per hour for delivery employees beginning the next week, according to Fox Business.

The city is being sued separately by Uber Technologies, DoorDash, and New York City-based Relay Delivery, who are all requesting a temporary restraining order to stop the pay rate requirement that is scheduled to take effect on July 12. Along with DoorDash, GrubHub joined the complaint.

Workers that use delivery apps are primarily gig workers who work independently, therefore minimum wage law does not usually apply to them. With the first law of its type in the United States, New York City hopes to change that. According to officials, the measure will help thousands of citizens escape poverty.

According to advocates of the measure, after expenses, delivery workers in the city make an average of $11 per hour, far less than the $15 minimum wage. In April 2025, the rate will increase to over $20 an hour if the new minimum wage law requiring $17.96 for delivery workers is approved.

READ ALSO: GrubHub Delivery Driver on A Hurried E-Bike Struck Mother with a Stroller in Manhattan

Food Delivery Services Price Increase Due to New Minimum Wage Law

However, delivery companies claim the information on pay for delivery workers was incomplete, the new minimum wage law will impose onerous restrictions, and the greater costs will force them to raise their prices to customers. Relay Delivery claims that until the company increases the costs it charges eateries, the law would force it out of business.

The city’s new minimum wage law, according to Uber spokesperson Josh Gold, “depends on the false assumption that restaurants make no money on deliveries. It must be paused before harming restaurants, customers, and the couriers it purports to protect.” City authorities are defending the ordinance by refusing to back down.

READ ALSO: Ford in Partnership with Uber Opens Lease for Mustang Mach-E in San Diego