Washington Governor Legislates Uber and Lyft Driver Compensation

Drivers will receive a minimum of $1.17 per mile and 34 cents per minute, with a minimum salary of $3.00 each trip.

Drivers will also have access to paid sick time, family medical leave, and long-term care programs, as well as workers' compensation, a government-mandated program that compensates employees who are injured or ill on the job in the United States. Drivers will also have the option to dispute their removal from the applications.

In Seattle, which adopted its own ride-hailing pay guideline in September 2020, drivers will continue to receive a minimum of $1.38 per mile and 59 cents per minute, for a total of at least $5.17 every trip.

The measure, which was backed by Uber and Lyft, eliminates local regulatory authority by prohibiting cities and counties from imposing extra restrictions on businesses.

Additionally, the rule stipulates that ride-hailing drivers are not considered workers, a point of contention for certain labor organizations and gig economy businesses such as Uber and Lyft. The gig economy's employers, who employ independent contractors, oppose any reclassification, while some labor organizations contend that drivers should be classified as employees with enhanced benefits.

"This new legislation provides drivers what they want - the ability to maintain their independence while obtaining unprecedented new perks and protections," Ramona Prieto, Uber's director of public policy in the Western United States, said in a statement. Uber anticipated the rule will be copied in more cities, states, and nations, she said.

"Drivers won this victory because labor groups, politicians, and app-based firms listened to them and then collaborated to pass a historic bill that benefits them," Jen Hensley, Lyft's director of government relations, said in a statement.

The Teamsters union Local 117, which also pushed for the Seattle wage norm, backed the new Washington legislation.

Prior to this regulation, only Seattle and New York City had established minimum wage guidelines for ride-hailing drivers in the United States.