Dive Brief:

• Shipt is facing separate lawsuits from the attorneys general for Minnesota and Washington, D.C., alleging the company misclassified its workers as independent contractors and violated several worker protections.
• Both lawsuits claim the Target-owned delivery company’s classification of its workers as independent contractors stems from a desire to avoid labor costs.
• Shipt said in a statement that its independent contractor classification is the “primary reason” its workers, which the company calls “shoppers,” use its platform. “We strongly disagree with the action taken by these two Attorneys General, and we’ll continue advocating for Shoppers and the opportunity to earn flexible income across Minnesota and Washington, D.C.,” per the statement from Shipt Spokesperson Evangeline George.

Dive Insight:

Along with alleging misclassification, both lawsuits also claim that Shipt blocks workers from several protections including minimum wage, sick and safe time, and overtime.

The suit in D.C. also claims Shipt is not compliant with the city’s public benefits program requirements, which are funded by employer contributions and managed by the city, and that the company is in violation of the city’s wage-and-hour law. The lawsuit claims Shipt “repeatedly pays District shoppers hourly wages that fall short of the required minimum wage” and claims that Shipt has an “employer-employee relationship” with its workers.

“Increasingly, we’re seeing companies abuse hard-working...

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