Ridehailing giants Uber and Lyft said they’d leave Minneapolis if a bill with a minimum wage provision for drivers passed. Earlier this week, both companies sent blast messages to customers, asking them to lobby the mayor and council members to oppose the policy.
The city council yesterday (Aug. 17) voted 7-5 to pass the ordinance that the two staunchly oppose. If the proposal becomes law come January, both the companies said they’d be compelled to drastically cut back operations or exit the city altogether.
A key part of the bill is guaranteeing the city’s $15 per hour minimum wage for any driver with ride originating in Minneapolis. It’ll also hold the behemoth firms accountable, asking them to provide longer timelines and more explanations when drivers are deactivated or fired. Plus, it intends to eliminate of the use of gift cards not issued by the rideshare companies, to provide a way to trace riders.
The city-level push comes just months after Minnesota governor Tim Walz in May vetoed a similar bill that passed both houses of the state legislature, after Uber and Lyft threatened to pull out. Instead, Waltz signed an executive order setting up a recommendations committee, which is due to share its findings in January.
The proposal now sits on the mayor’s table to be signed into law. Minneapolis’s democratic mayor, Jacob Frey, who had asked the council to delay the vote to buy more time to review the ordinance, has the right to veto the bill. It’s not yet clear where...
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