Waymo, Uber, Lyft to Expand on SF’s Market Street, Despite Pushback From Transit Groups
Waymo Continues To Increase Its Footprint In Los Angeles
California Gives Uber, Lyft Drivers Collective Bargaining Rights
Gig Workers Are Seeing Little of Prop. 22 Promises — and Lack of Enforcement From State
Uber Users Will Soon Be Able to Order an Autonomous Cruise Car, But Not in California
Uber and Lyft Are Fighting Minimum Wage Laws. But in This State, the Drivers Won
In Effort to Make Rides Safer, Lyft Launches Women+ Connect
'No Reward for Loyalty': Gig Companies Winning Fight to Classify Drivers as Independent
Court Upholds Prop. 22 in Big Win for Gig Firms Like Lyft and Uber
Sponsored
Player sponsored by
window.__IS_SSR__=true
window.__INITIAL_STATE__={
"attachmentsReducer": {
"audio_0": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_0",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background0.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_1": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_1",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background1.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_2": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_2",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background2.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_3": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_3",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background3.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_4": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_4",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background4.jpg"
}
}
},
"placeholder": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "placeholder",
"imgSizes": {
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 533,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-768x512.jpg",
"width": 768,
"height": 512,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"fd-lrg": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"fd-med": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"fd-sm": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 533,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"xxsmall": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"xsmall": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"small": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"xlarge": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1920x1280.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1280,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-32": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 32,
"height": 32,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-50": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 50,
"height": 50,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-64": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 64,
"height": 64,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-96": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 96,
"height": 96,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-128": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 128,
"height": 128,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"detail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1333
}
}
},
"news_12004750": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12004750",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12004750",
"found": true
},
"title": "San Francisco downtown street",
"publishDate": 1726261449,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 12004742,
"modified": 1726261591,
"caption": "Powell and Market streets in downtown San Francisco. San Francisco Transit officials greenlit an expansion of rideshare operations to 24-hour-a-day service on San Francisco’s downtown Market Street. ",
"credit": "Vichie81/Getty Images",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/DowntownSFGetty1-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 533,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/DowntownSFGetty1-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/DowntownSFGetty1-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/DowntownSFGetty1-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/DowntownSFGetty1-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/DowntownSFGetty1-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/DowntownSFGetty1-1920x1280.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1280,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/DowntownSFGetty1.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1333
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_12059953": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12059953",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12059953",
"found": true
},
"title": "uber-driver-68efa0e2b31b4",
"publishDate": 1760534784,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 12059952,
"modified": 1760534848,
"caption": "Oscar Cordero waits in his car for customers at LAX. He's driven 15,000 miles over nine years working full-time for Uber and Lyft. ",
"credit": "Megan Jamerson/KCRW",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/uber-driver-68efa0e2b31b4-2000x1500.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1500,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/uber-driver-68efa0e2b31b4-2000x1500.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1500,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/uber-driver-68efa0e2b31b4-160x120.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 120,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/uber-driver-68efa0e2b31b4-1536x1152.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1152,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"2048x2048": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/uber-driver-68efa0e2b31b4-2048x1536.jpg",
"width": 2048,
"height": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/uber-driver-68efa0e2b31b4-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/uber-driver-68efa0e2b31b4-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/uber-driver-68efa0e2b31b4-2000x1500.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1500,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/10/uber-driver-68efa0e2b31b4-scaled.jpg",
"width": 2560,
"height": 1920
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_11997574": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_11997574",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "11997574",
"found": true
},
"title": "US-DEMONSTRATION-UBER-LYFT",
"publishDate": 1722018786,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 12033648,
"modified": 1759532393,
"caption": "Members of the Rideshare Drivers United organization protest against Uber and Lyft during a demonstration in Los Angeles, California, on Feb.14, 2024. ",
"credit": "Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/07/GettyImages-2003719181-800x534.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 534,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/07/GettyImages-2003719181-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/07/GettyImages-2003719181-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/07/GettyImages-2003719181-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/07/GettyImages-2003719181-1024x576.jpg",
"width": 1024,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/07/GettyImages-2003719181.jpg",
"width": 1024,
"height": 683
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_12003064": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12003064",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12003064",
"found": true
},
"title": "052124_Prop-22_JY_CM_12",
"publishDate": 1725481668,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 12002988,
"modified": 1725481702,
"caption": "Ride-share drivers of the California Gig Workers Union hold a rally outside of the Supreme Court of California to protest Prop. 22 in San Francisco on May 21, 2024. The state Supreme Court later upheld the constitutionality of the measure. \n",
"credit": "Juliana Yamada/CalMatters",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/052124_Prop-22_JY_CM_12-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 533,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/052124_Prop-22_JY_CM_12-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/052124_Prop-22_JY_CM_12-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/052124_Prop-22_JY_CM_12-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/052124_Prop-22_JY_CM_12-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/052124_Prop-22_JY_CM_12-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/052124_Prop-22_JY_CM_12-1920x1280.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1280,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/052124_Prop-22_JY_CM_12.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1333
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_12001650": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12001650",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12001650",
"found": true
},
"title": "Cruise cars parked in a lot on 16th St. in San Francisco on Dec. 14, 2023.",
"publishDate": 1724442135,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 12001637,
"modified": 1724442160,
"caption": "Cruise cars parked in a lot on 16th Street in San Francisco on Dec. 14, 2023.",
"credit": "Martin do Nascimento/KQED",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/231214-CRUISE-MD-06_qed-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 533,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/231214-CRUISE-MD-06_qed-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/231214-CRUISE-MD-06_qed-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/231214-CRUISE-MD-06_qed-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/231214-CRUISE-MD-06_qed-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/231214-CRUISE-MD-06_qed-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/231214-CRUISE-MD-06_qed-1920x1280.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1280,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/08/231214-CRUISE-MD-06_qed.jpg",
"width": 1999,
"height": 1333
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_11990763": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_11990763",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "11990763",
"found": true
},
"title": "npr.brightspotcdn copy",
"publishDate": 1718657883,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 11990750,
"modified": 1718657907,
"caption": "Vehicles drive toward downtown Minneapolis on Interstate 35 on a Sunday in May.",
"credit": "Jenn Ackerman for NPR",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-copy-800x534.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 534,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-copy-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-copy-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-copy-1536x1025.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1025,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-copy-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-copy-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-copy.jpg",
"width": 1700,
"height": 1134
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_11961383": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_11961383",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "11961383",
"found": true
},
"parent": 11961382,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/ap23111699985213-efcb90debc66e3f5f5199c6b4131b578270078fe-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/ap23111699985213-efcb90debc66e3f5f5199c6b4131b578270078fe-160x120.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 120
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/ap23111699985213-efcb90debc66e3f5f5199c6b4131b578270078fe-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/ap23111699985213-efcb90debc66e3f5f5199c6b4131b578270078fe-scaled.jpg",
"width": 2560,
"height": 1920
},
"2048x2048": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/ap23111699985213-efcb90debc66e3f5f5199c6b4131b578270078fe-2048x1536.jpg",
"width": 2048,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1536
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/ap23111699985213-efcb90debc66e3f5f5199c6b4131b578270078fe-1020x765.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 765
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/ap23111699985213-efcb90debc66e3f5f5199c6b4131b578270078fe-1536x1152.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1152
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/ap23111699985213-efcb90debc66e3f5f5199c6b4131b578270078fe-1920x1440.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1440
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/09/ap23111699985213-efcb90debc66e3f5f5199c6b4131b578270078fe-800x600.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 600
}
},
"publishDate": 1694805944,
"modified": 1694806159,
"caption": null,
"description": "A Lyft vehicle parked in 2020. The new program from the ride-hailing app will let women and nonbinary drivers match with riders.",
"title": "Lyft announced it's rolling out a new safety feature in San Francisco, San Jose, San Diego, Phoenix, and Chicago.",
"credit": "David Zalubowski/AP",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "the back of a van that says 'Lyft'",
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_11944370": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_11944370",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "11944370",
"found": true
},
"parent": 0,
"imgSizes": {
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52368_010_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52368_010_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-160x106.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 106
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52368_010_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52368_010_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-scaled.jpg",
"width": 2560,
"height": 1704
},
"2048x2048": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52368_010_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-2048x1363.jpg",
"width": 2048,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1363
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52368_010_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1020x679.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 679
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52368_010_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1536x1022.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1022
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52368_010_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1920x1278.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1278
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52368_010_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-800x532.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 532
}
},
"publishDate": 1679511824,
"modified": 1679526543,
"caption": "Hector Castellanos (center) with We Drive Progress holds a sign that says 'Drivers Deserve the Wealth' outside DoorDash headquarters in San Francisco on Nov. 3, 2021, along with fellow gig workers, including rideshare and delivery drivers, demanding fair pay and employee rights.",
"description": null,
"title": "RS52368_010_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021",
"credit": "Beth LaBerge/KQED",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "A man with dark hair holds a white sign with red lettering that reads, \"Drivers Deserve the Wealth\" and \"We Drive Progress.\" Other black and white signs are seen in foreground.",
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_11843813": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_11843813",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "11843813",
"found": true
},
"parent": 11843123,
"imgSizes": {
"apple_news_ca_landscape_5_5": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-1044x783.jpg",
"width": 1044,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 783
},
"apple_news_ca_square_4_0": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-470x470.jpg",
"width": 470,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 470
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 576
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-160x111.jpg",
"width": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 111
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 372
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1330
},
"apple_news_ca_landscape_4_7": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-632x474.jpg",
"width": 632,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 474
},
"large": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-1020x707.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 707
},
"apple_news_ca_landscape_4_0": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-536x402.jpg",
"width": 536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 402
},
"apple_news_ca_portrait_12_9": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-1122x1330.jpg",
"width": 1122,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1330
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-800x554.jpg",
"width": 800,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 554
},
"apple_news_ca_portrait_4_0": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-354x472.jpg",
"width": 354,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 472
},
"apple_news_ca_portrait_9_7": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-840x1120.jpg",
"width": 840,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1120
},
"apple_news_ca_landscape_12_9": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-1832x1330.jpg",
"width": 1832,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1330
},
"apple_news_ca_square_9_7": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-1104x1104.jpg",
"width": 1104,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1104
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-1536x1064.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1064
},
"apple_news_ca_portrait_4_7": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-414x552.jpg",
"width": 414,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 552
},
"apple_news_ca_square_12_9": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-1472x1330.jpg",
"width": 1472,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1330
},
"apple_news_ca_portrait_5_5": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-687x916.jpg",
"width": 687,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 916
},
"apple_news_ca_square_4_7": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-550x550.jpg",
"width": 550,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 550
},
"apple_news_ca_landscape_9_7": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-1376x1032.jpg",
"width": 1376,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 1032
},
"apple_news_ca_square_5_5": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/10/uber-lyft-protest-sign-912x912.jpg",
"width": 912,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg",
"height": 912
}
},
"publishDate": 1603753946,
"modified": 1678823724,
"caption": "A supporter of ride-hail drivers holds a sign during a protest in front of Uber headquarters in May 2019. Prop. 22, backed by huge amounts of cash from gig companies, would create a new class of worker in California.",
"description": "A supporter of ride-hail drivers holds a sign during a protest in front of Uber headquarters in May, 2019. Prop. 22, backed by huge amounts of cash from gig companies, would create a new class of worker in California.",
"title": "uber-lyft-protest-sign",
"credit": "Justin Sullivan/Getty Images",
"status": "inherit",
"altTag": "Protesters stand on a sidewalk in front of an office, and next to a car with Lyft and Uber stickers on the back. A woman holds a sign that says: Uber: 'Pay Drivers a Living Wage.'",
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
}
},
"audioPlayerReducer": {
"postId": "stream_live",
"isPaused": true,
"isPlaying": false,
"pfsActive": false,
"pledgeModalIsOpen": true,
"playerDrawerIsOpen": false
},
"authorsReducer": {
"byline_news_12002988": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_news_12002988",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_news_12002988",
"name": "Levi Sumagaysay, CALMatters",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_news_11990750": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_news_11990750",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_news_11990750",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/1147860766/dara-kerr\">Dara Kerr\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_news_11961382": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_news_11961382",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_news_11961382",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/527855988/vanessa-romo\">Vanessa Romo\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_news_11943454": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_news_11943454",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_news_11943454",
"name": "\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/author/grace-gedye/\">Grace Gedye\u003c/a>",
"isLoading": false
},
"rachael-myrow": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "251",
"meta": {
"index": "authors_1716337520",
"id": "251",
"found": true
},
"name": "Rachael Myrow",
"firstName": "Rachael",
"lastName": "Myrow",
"slug": "rachael-myrow",
"email": "rmyrow@kqed.org",
"display_author_email": false,
"staff_mastheads": [
"news"
],
"title": "Senior Editor of KQED's Silicon Valley News Desk",
"bio": "Rachael Myrow is Senior Editor of KQED's Silicon Valley News Desk, reporting on topics like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12023367/what-big-tech-sees-in-donald-trump\">what Big Tech sees in President Trump\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12020857/california-lawmaker-ready-revive-fight-regulating-ai\">California's many, many AI bills\u003c/a>, and the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12017713/lost-sounds-of-san-francisco\">lost sounds of San Francisco\u003c/a>. You can hear her work on \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/search?query=Rachael%20Myrow&page=1\">NPR\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://theworld.org/people/rachael-myrow\">The World\u003c/a>, WBUR's \u003ca href=\"https://www.wbur.org/search?q=Rachael%20Myrow\">\u003ci>Here & Now\u003c/i>\u003c/a> and the BBC. \u003c/i>She also guest hosts for KQED's \u003ci>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/tag/rachael-myrow\">Forum\u003c/a>\u003c/i>. Over the years, she's talked with Kamau Bell, David Byrne, Kamala Harris, Tony Kushner, Armistead Maupin, Van Dyke Parks, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Tommie Smith, among others.\r\n\r\nBefore all this, she hosted \u003cem>The California Report\u003c/em> for 7+ years.\r\n\r\nAwards? Sure: Peabody, Edward R. Murrow, Regional Edward R. Murrow, RTNDA, Northern California RTNDA, SPJ Northern California Chapter, LA Press Club, Golden Mic. Prior to joining KQED, Rachael worked in Los Angeles at KPCC and Marketplace. She holds degrees in English and journalism from UC Berkeley (where she got her start in public radio on KALX-FM).\r\n\r\nOutside of the studio, you'll find Rachael hiking Bay Area trails and whipping up Instagram-ready meals in her kitchen. More recently, she's taken up native-forward gardening.",
"avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/87bf8cb5874e045cdff430523a6d48b1?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twitter": "rachaelmyrow",
"facebook": null,
"instagram": null,
"linkedin": "https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachaelmyrow/",
"sites": [
{
"site": "arts",
"roles": [
"administrator"
]
},
{
"site": "news",
"roles": [
"edit_others_posts",
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "futureofyou",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "bayareabites",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "stateofhealth",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "science",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "food",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "forum",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "liveblog",
"roles": [
"author"
]
}
],
"headData": {
"title": "Rachael Myrow | KQED",
"description": "Senior Editor of KQED's Silicon Valley News Desk",
"ogImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/87bf8cb5874e045cdff430523a6d48b1?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/87bf8cb5874e045cdff430523a6d48b1?s=600&d=blank&r=g"
},
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/author/rachael-myrow"
},
"fjhabvala": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "8659",
"meta": {
"index": "authors_1716337520",
"id": "8659",
"found": true
},
"name": "Farida Jhabvala Romero",
"firstName": "Farida",
"lastName": "Jhabvala Romero",
"slug": "fjhabvala",
"email": "fjhabvala@kqed.org",
"display_author_email": true,
"staff_mastheads": [
"news"
],
"title": "KQED Contributor",
"bio": "\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Farida Jhabvala Romero is a Labor Correspondent for KQED. She previously covered immigration. Farida was \u003ca href=\"https://www.ccnma.org/2022-most-influential-latina-journalists\">named\u003c/a> one of the 10 Most Influential Latina Journalists in California in 2022 by the California Chicano News Media Association. Her work has won awards from the Society of Professional Journalists (Northern California), as well as a national and regional Edward M. Murrow Award for the collaborative reporting projects “Dangerous Air” and “Graying California.” \u003c/span>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Before joining KQED, Farida worked as a producer at Radio Bilingüe, a national public radio network. Farida earned her master’s degree in journalism from Stanford University.\u003c/span>",
"avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/c3ab27c5554b67b478f80971e515aa02?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twitter": "FaridaJhabvala",
"facebook": null,
"instagram": null,
"linkedin": "https://www.linkedin.com/in/faridajhabvala/",
"sites": [
{
"site": "news",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "stateofhealth",
"roles": [
"author"
]
}
],
"headData": {
"title": "Farida Jhabvala Romero | KQED",
"description": "KQED Contributor",
"ogImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/c3ab27c5554b67b478f80971e515aa02?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/c3ab27c5554b67b478f80971e515aa02?s=600&d=blank&r=g"
},
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/author/fjhabvala"
},
"kmizuguchi": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "11739",
"meta": {
"index": "authors_1716337520",
"id": "11739",
"found": true
},
"name": "Keith Mizuguchi",
"firstName": "Keith",
"lastName": "Mizuguchi",
"slug": "kmizuguchi",
"email": "kmizuguchi@kqed.org",
"display_author_email": false,
"staff_mastheads": [],
"title": "KQED Contributor",
"bio": null,
"avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/ce1182f9924192ae5ea66d39a75cd7d1?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twitter": null,
"facebook": null,
"instagram": null,
"linkedin": null,
"sites": [
{
"site": "news",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "science",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
}
],
"headData": {
"title": "Keith Mizuguchi | KQED",
"description": "KQED Contributor",
"ogImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/ce1182f9924192ae5ea66d39a75cd7d1?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/ce1182f9924192ae5ea66d39a75cd7d1?s=600&d=blank&r=g"
},
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/author/kmizuguchi"
},
"kdebenedetti": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "11913",
"meta": {
"index": "authors_1716337520",
"id": "11913",
"found": true
},
"name": "Katie DeBenedetti",
"firstName": "Katie",
"lastName": "DeBenedetti",
"slug": "kdebenedetti",
"email": "kdebenedetti@kqed.org",
"display_author_email": false,
"staff_mastheads": [
"news",
"science"
],
"title": "KQED Contributor",
"bio": "Katie DeBenedetti is a digital reporter covering daily news for the Express Desk. Prior to joining KQED as a culture reporting intern in January 2024, she covered education and city government for the Napa Valley Register.",
"avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/6e31073cb8f7e4214ab03f42771d0f45?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twitter": null,
"facebook": null,
"instagram": null,
"linkedin": null,
"sites": [
{
"site": "news",
"roles": [
"author"
]
},
{
"site": "science",
"roles": [
"author"
]
},
{
"site": "liveblog",
"roles": [
"author"
]
}
],
"headData": {
"title": "Katie DeBenedetti | KQED",
"description": "KQED Contributor",
"ogImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/6e31073cb8f7e4214ab03f42771d0f45?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/6e31073cb8f7e4214ab03f42771d0f45?s=600&d=blank&r=g"
},
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/author/kdebenedetti"
},
"bkrans": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "11923",
"meta": {
"index": "authors_1716337520",
"id": "11923",
"found": true
},
"name": "Brian Krans",
"firstName": "Brian",
"lastName": "Krans",
"slug": "bkrans",
"email": "bkrans@kqed.org",
"display_author_email": false,
"staff_mastheads": [
"news"
],
"title": "KQED Contributing Reporter",
"bio": "Brian Krans is an award-winning local news and investigative reporter who has been proudly working as a general assignment reporter for KQED since August 2023. He lives in Richmond, where he also reports on air pollution for Richmondside. He is also a founding member of the Vallejo Sun.",
"avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/d1014d604089314a94807d2c4f2d3e06?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twitter": "citizenkrans",
"facebook": null,
"instagram": null,
"linkedin": null,
"sites": [
{
"site": "news",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
}
],
"headData": {
"title": "Brian Krans | KQED",
"description": "KQED Contributing Reporter",
"ogImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/d1014d604089314a94807d2c4f2d3e06?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/d1014d604089314a94807d2c4f2d3e06?s=600&d=blank&r=g"
},
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/author/bkrans"
}
},
"breakingNewsReducer": {},
"pagesReducer": {},
"postsReducer": {
"stream_live": {
"type": "live",
"id": "stream_live",
"audioUrl": "https://streams.kqed.org/kqedradio",
"title": "Live Stream",
"excerpt": "Live Stream information currently unavailable.",
"link": "/radio",
"featImg": "",
"label": {
"name": "KQED Live",
"link": "/"
}
},
"stream_kqedNewscast": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "stream_kqedNewscast",
"audioUrl": "https://www.kqed.org/.stream/anon/radio/RDnews/newscast.mp3?_=1",
"title": "KQED Newscast",
"featImg": "",
"label": {
"name": "88.5 FM",
"link": "/"
}
},
"news_12065918": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12065918",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12065918",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1764810273000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "waymo-uber-lyft-to-expand-on-sfs-market-street-despite-pushback-from-transit-groups",
"title": "Waymo, Uber, Lyft to Expand on SF’s Market Street, Despite Pushback From Transit Groups",
"publishDate": 1764810273,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "Waymo, Uber, Lyft to Expand on SF’s Market Street, Despite Pushback From Transit Groups | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>Ride-hailing companies will be allowed to serve riders on San Francisco’s Market Street 24 hours a day starting later this month, despite pleas from safe streets activists \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12053305/advocates-warn-of-dangerous-and-chaotic-market-st-as-it-reopens-to-some-cars\">to return to a car-free roadway\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Waymo and select Uber and Lyft vehicles are set to enter the third and final phase of a pilot program to allow the companies to drop off and pick up passengers on the road that’s been shuttered to cars since 2020, San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency Director Julie Kirschbaum told the organization’s Board of Directors Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“So far, activity has been fairly limited, and importantly, there have been no detrimental outcomes to our key transportation metrics,” Kirschbaum said. “Based on their findings, I believe this is a good time to shift to the next stage.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In August, the city allowed Waymo, Lyft and Uber Black cars to begin dropping off and picking up riders at seven loading bays along a two-mile stretch of Market Street during limited hours, in accordance with city policy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The commercial vehicles have not been legally obligated to stay off the road under SFMTA traffic regulations, though \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12035348/mayor-lurie-allows-waymo-on-sfs-car-free-market-street\">Waymo confirmed in April that it had\u003c/a> voluntarily refrained from operating there until the summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12053385\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12053385\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/IMG_0527_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/IMG_0527_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/IMG_0527_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/IMG_0527_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An Uber and Lyft driver drops off a customer in San Francisco’s downtown neighborhood on Aug. 31, 2015. \u003ccite>(Ericka Cruz Guevarra/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Market Street had been completely car-free since January 2020, after more than a decade of advocacy from biking, pedestrian and transit supporters. The move was part of the citywide “Better Market Street” \u003ca href=\"https://bettermarketstreetsf.org/about.html\">proposal\u003c/a>, which aimed to transform the city’s central roadway to “connect the City’s Civic Center with cultural, social, convention, tourism, and retail destinations.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Mayor Daniel Lurie has said that reopening Market Street to some ride-hailing cars was key to his plan for downtown revitalization.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The Market Street corridor is key to our city’s recovery, and by thoughtfully expanding transportation options, we are going to bring residents and visitors back to enjoy everything Market Street has to offer,” he said in a statement when the pilot launched in August. “We are identifying the tools to get people back to our theaters, hotels, and restaurants, and drive San Francisco’s comeback.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the past three months, Waymo has been allowed to pick up and drop off passengers at seven locations between Fifth and Eighth streets between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., and overnight from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. They’ve had permission to drive on the strip between Van Ness Avenue and Steuart Street.[aside postID=news_12063805 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/WaymoSFGetty.jpg']Uber and Lyft Black — or premium line — cars have been allowed to operate at those same locations during the evening and night hours, from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So far, Jenny Delumo with SFMTA’s Streets Division said there’s been virtually no impact on travel time along Market, and no decrease in Muni ridership or bike use. She did note, however, that some bikers and pedestrians have raised concerns about the vehicles’ return.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kirschbaum said that SFMTA will continue monitoring impacts as companies scale up their operations. The agency plans to return to the board of directors in mid-2026 with a full evaluation of the pilot program and recommendations for future vehicle access.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While the Mid Market Community Benefits District, a nonprofit that promotes local businesses, praised the rideshare expansion and asked SFMTA to reopen Market Street to all traffic, safe street advocacy groups are pushing for the city to reverse course.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>San Francisco Bicycle Coalition Executive Director Christopher White said the organization’s thousand members are feeling the impact of a more crowded roadway during public comment at SFMTA’s meeting on Tuesday. He also questioned the value of opening the road, claiming that the ride-hailing apps have continued to avoid drop-offs and pick-ups because the seven loading bays are often full.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944379\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11944379 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-scaled-e1764810192572.jpg\" alt=\"A closeup shot of a black vehicle with a pink Lyft sticker and a black and white Uber sticker on the left side of its windshield. The vehicle sits idle, waiting to pick up a customer.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco Transit officials greenlit an expansion of rideshare operations to 24-hour-a-day service on San Francisco’s downtown Market Street. \u003ccite>(Ericka Cruz Guevarra/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>At the same time, though, he said the expansion has led to “more private vehicles illegally driving on Market Street.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And who can blame them, when to all appearances, Market Street is back open to cars?” White said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Walk SF Executive Director Jodie Medeiros urged SFMTA to adopt its own community advisory committee’s motion, presented last month, to close the loophole in city policy that allows commercial vehicles to operate. The committee recommended limiting commercial operations to just goods deliveries to businesses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We can’t go back to a dangerous and chaotic Market Street,” she said. “More autonomous vehicle companies, including Tesla, are coming to San Francisco streets and will bring thousands more trips every day. And they’ll want, or just take, the access that Waymo is getting now.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If it becomes a dangerous, congested mess again, it is going to seriously harm transit service and safety, and it certainly will not help the economic recovery of downtown,” she continued.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "San Francisco Transit officials greenlit an expansion of rideshare operations to 24-hour-a-day service on San Francisco’s downtown Market Street. ",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1764814397,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 20,
"wordCount": 902
},
"headData": {
"title": "Waymo, Uber, Lyft to Expand on SF’s Market Street, Despite Pushback From Transit Groups | KQED",
"description": "San Francisco Transit officials greenlit an expansion of rideshare operations to 24-hour-a-day service on San Francisco’s downtown Market Street. ",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "Waymo, Uber, Lyft to Expand on SF’s Market Street, Despite Pushback From Transit Groups",
"datePublished": "2025-12-03T17:04:33-08:00",
"dateModified": "2025-12-03T18:13:17-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"primaryCategory": {
"termId": 1397,
"slug": "transportation",
"name": "Transportation"
},
"sticky": false,
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12065918",
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12065918/waymo-uber-lyft-to-expand-on-sfs-market-street-despite-pushback-from-transit-groups",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Ride-hailing companies will be allowed to serve riders on San Francisco’s Market Street 24 hours a day starting later this month, despite pleas from safe streets activists \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12053305/advocates-warn-of-dangerous-and-chaotic-market-st-as-it-reopens-to-some-cars\">to return to a car-free roadway\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Waymo and select Uber and Lyft vehicles are set to enter the third and final phase of a pilot program to allow the companies to drop off and pick up passengers on the road that’s been shuttered to cars since 2020, San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency Director Julie Kirschbaum told the organization’s Board of Directors Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“So far, activity has been fairly limited, and importantly, there have been no detrimental outcomes to our key transportation metrics,” Kirschbaum said. “Based on their findings, I believe this is a good time to shift to the next stage.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In August, the city allowed Waymo, Lyft and Uber Black cars to begin dropping off and picking up riders at seven loading bays along a two-mile stretch of Market Street during limited hours, in accordance with city policy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The commercial vehicles have not been legally obligated to stay off the road under SFMTA traffic regulations, though \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12035348/mayor-lurie-allows-waymo-on-sfs-car-free-market-street\">Waymo confirmed in April that it had\u003c/a> voluntarily refrained from operating there until the summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12053385\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12053385\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/IMG_0527_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/IMG_0527_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/IMG_0527_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/IMG_0527_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An Uber and Lyft driver drops off a customer in San Francisco’s downtown neighborhood on Aug. 31, 2015. \u003ccite>(Ericka Cruz Guevarra/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Market Street had been completely car-free since January 2020, after more than a decade of advocacy from biking, pedestrian and transit supporters. The move was part of the citywide “Better Market Street” \u003ca href=\"https://bettermarketstreetsf.org/about.html\">proposal\u003c/a>, which aimed to transform the city’s central roadway to “connect the City’s Civic Center with cultural, social, convention, tourism, and retail destinations.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Mayor Daniel Lurie has said that reopening Market Street to some ride-hailing cars was key to his plan for downtown revitalization.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The Market Street corridor is key to our city’s recovery, and by thoughtfully expanding transportation options, we are going to bring residents and visitors back to enjoy everything Market Street has to offer,” he said in a statement when the pilot launched in August. “We are identifying the tools to get people back to our theaters, hotels, and restaurants, and drive San Francisco’s comeback.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the past three months, Waymo has been allowed to pick up and drop off passengers at seven locations between Fifth and Eighth streets between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., and overnight from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. They’ve had permission to drive on the strip between Van Ness Avenue and Steuart Street.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12063805",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/11/WaymoSFGetty.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Uber and Lyft Black — or premium line — cars have been allowed to operate at those same locations during the evening and night hours, from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So far, Jenny Delumo with SFMTA’s Streets Division said there’s been virtually no impact on travel time along Market, and no decrease in Muni ridership or bike use. She did note, however, that some bikers and pedestrians have raised concerns about the vehicles’ return.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kirschbaum said that SFMTA will continue monitoring impacts as companies scale up their operations. The agency plans to return to the board of directors in mid-2026 with a full evaluation of the pilot program and recommendations for future vehicle access.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While the Mid Market Community Benefits District, a nonprofit that promotes local businesses, praised the rideshare expansion and asked SFMTA to reopen Market Street to all traffic, safe street advocacy groups are pushing for the city to reverse course.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>San Francisco Bicycle Coalition Executive Director Christopher White said the organization’s thousand members are feeling the impact of a more crowded roadway during public comment at SFMTA’s meeting on Tuesday. He also questioned the value of opening the road, claiming that the ride-hailing apps have continued to avoid drop-offs and pick-ups because the seven loading bays are often full.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944379\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-11944379 size-full\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-scaled-e1764810192572.jpg\" alt=\"A closeup shot of a black vehicle with a pink Lyft sticker and a black and white Uber sticker on the left side of its windshield. The vehicle sits idle, waiting to pick up a customer.\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco Transit officials greenlit an expansion of rideshare operations to 24-hour-a-day service on San Francisco’s downtown Market Street. \u003ccite>(Ericka Cruz Guevarra/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>At the same time, though, he said the expansion has led to “more private vehicles illegally driving on Market Street.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And who can blame them, when to all appearances, Market Street is back open to cars?” White said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Walk SF Executive Director Jodie Medeiros urged SFMTA to adopt its own community advisory committee’s motion, presented last month, to close the loophole in city policy that allows commercial vehicles to operate. The committee recommended limiting commercial operations to just goods deliveries to businesses.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We can’t go back to a dangerous and chaotic Market Street,” she said. “More autonomous vehicle companies, including Tesla, are coming to San Francisco streets and will bring thousands more trips every day. And they’ll want, or just take, the access that Waymo is getting now.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If it becomes a dangerous, congested mess again, it is going to seriously harm transit service and safety, and it certainly will not help the economic recovery of downtown,” she continued.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12065918/waymo-uber-lyft-to-expand-on-sfs-market-street-despite-pushback-from-transit-groups",
"authors": [
"11913"
],
"categories": [
"news_28250",
"news_8",
"news_248",
"news_1397"
],
"tags": [
"news_34043",
"news_33010",
"news_4524",
"news_17660",
"news_5535",
"news_22456",
"news_23667",
"news_4756",
"news_25675",
"news_4658",
"news_33028",
"news_38",
"news_92",
"news_20517",
"news_4523",
"news_20576"
],
"featImg": "news_12004750",
"label": "news"
},
"news_12059952": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12059952",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12059952",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1760547620000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "waymo-continues-to-increase-its-footprint-in-los-angeles",
"title": "Waymo Continues To Increase Its Footprint In Los Angeles",
"publishDate": 1760547620,
"format": "audio",
"headTitle": "Waymo Continues To Increase Its Footprint In Los Angeles | KQED",
"labelTerm": {},
"content": "\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Wednesday, October 15, 2025…\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">In San Francisco, more people are now ordering Waymo robotaxis than Lyfts with human drivers. People are getting more comfortable using driverless cars. This got us thinking – is the same thing \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kcrw.com/shows/kcrw-reports/stories/waymo-uber-lyft\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">about to happen in LA?\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> And how do human Uber and Lyft drivers feel about it? \u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">A \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2024-111/\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">new state audit\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> released this week finds that California’s public college systems aren’t doing enough to meet the need for student housing.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kcrw.com/shows/kcrw-reports/stories/waymo-uber-lyft\">\u003cstrong>How Increase In Driverless Vehicles In Los Angeles Could Impact Rideshare Drivers \u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you live in San Francisco, you see them everywhere. Waymo driverless vehicles have already taken a huge market share in the city, as more and more people seem to be more comfortable taking the autonomous vehicles. But what about other markets like Los Angeles?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’s still one place in L.A. where you are guaranteed to find tons of rideshare drivers, and no robotaxis – LAX. That’s because they’re not allowed there yet. But it may be where you find Oscar Cordero. He’s a nine year veteran of Uber and Lyft with 15,000 rides under his belt. He’s keeping an eye on all of those white driverless Jaguars. “They’re everywhere,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In two years, Waymo has expanded quickly in Los Angeles. The company now operates over 600 vehicles across more than 120 square miles. They’re even testing their robotaxis on L.A.’s freeways. And there are other dozens of other companies looking to test their driverless vehicles in the state as well. Mark Giarelli is a stock researcher at Morningstar. He’s been keeping an eye on Waymo and how much its cutting into Uber and Lyft. “Just how close are we to autonomous vehicle or AV dominance? Put simply, it’s not imminent, but it’s starting to feel tangible,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Giarelli says today, autonomous vehicles nationally are doing less than 1% of total trips. He predicts that autonomous vehicles will be approximately half of U.S. and Canadian ride hail in ten years.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>Audit Finds CA Colleges Aren’t Doing Enough To Address Student Housing \u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">A \u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2024-111/\">new state audit released this week\u003c/a> finds that California’s public college systems aren’t doing enough to measure or meet the need for student housing.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report found that despite state investments aimed at increasing student housing, the University of California, California State University, and state community college system each lack a centralized strategy for doing so. The audit recommended administrations take a stronger leadership role. That includes tracking basic data, such as how many students need a place to live, and ensuring schools provide clear information for students on housing costs and assistance programs.\u003c/p>\n\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "Waymo now operates over 600 vehicles across more than 120 square miles.",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1760702900,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 9,
"wordCount": 492
},
"headData": {
"title": "Waymo Continues To Increase Its Footprint In Los Angeles | KQED",
"description": "Waymo now operates over 600 vehicles across more than 120 square miles.",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "Waymo Continues To Increase Its Footprint In Los Angeles",
"datePublished": "2025-10-15T10:00:20-07:00",
"dateModified": "2025-10-17T05:08:20-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"primaryCategory": {
"termId": 33520,
"slug": "podcast",
"name": "Podcast"
},
"source": "The California Report",
"sourceUrl": "https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/tcrarchive/",
"audioUrl": "https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/chrt.fm/track/G6C7C3/traffic.megaphone.fm/KQINC6368922577.mp3?updated=1760537493",
"sticky": false,
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12059952",
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12059952/waymo-continues-to-increase-its-footprint-in-los-angeles",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cb>Here are the morning’s top stories on Wednesday, October 15, 2025…\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cul>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">In San Francisco, more people are now ordering Waymo robotaxis than Lyfts with human drivers. People are getting more comfortable using driverless cars. This got us thinking – is the same thing \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kcrw.com/shows/kcrw-reports/stories/waymo-uber-lyft\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">about to happen in LA?\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> And how do human Uber and Lyft drivers feel about it? \u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">A \u003c/span>\u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2024-111/\">\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">new state audit\u003c/span>\u003c/a>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\"> released this week finds that California’s public college systems aren’t doing enough to meet the need for student housing.\u003c/span>\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003ch2>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kcrw.com/shows/kcrw-reports/stories/waymo-uber-lyft\">\u003cstrong>How Increase In Driverless Vehicles In Los Angeles Could Impact Rideshare Drivers \u003c/strong>\u003c/a>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>If you live in San Francisco, you see them everywhere. Waymo driverless vehicles have already taken a huge market share in the city, as more and more people seem to be more comfortable taking the autonomous vehicles. But what about other markets like Los Angeles?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’s still one place in L.A. where you are guaranteed to find tons of rideshare drivers, and no robotaxis – LAX. That’s because they’re not allowed there yet. But it may be where you find Oscar Cordero. He’s a nine year veteran of Uber and Lyft with 15,000 rides under his belt. He’s keeping an eye on all of those white driverless Jaguars. “They’re everywhere,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In two years, Waymo has expanded quickly in Los Angeles. The company now operates over 600 vehicles across more than 120 square miles. They’re even testing their robotaxis on L.A.’s freeways. And there are other dozens of other companies looking to test their driverless vehicles in the state as well. Mark Giarelli is a stock researcher at Morningstar. He’s been keeping an eye on Waymo and how much its cutting into Uber and Lyft. “Just how close are we to autonomous vehicle or AV dominance? Put simply, it’s not imminent, but it’s starting to feel tangible,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Giarelli says today, autonomous vehicles nationally are doing less than 1% of total trips. He predicts that autonomous vehicles will be approximately half of U.S. and Canadian ride hail in ten years.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>\u003cstrong>Audit Finds CA Colleges Aren’t Doing Enough To Address Student Housing \u003c/strong>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">A \u003ca href=\"https://www.auditor.ca.gov/reports/2024-111/\">new state audit released this week\u003c/a> finds that California’s public college systems aren’t doing enough to measure or meet the need for student housing.\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report found that despite state investments aimed at increasing student housing, the University of California, California State University, and state community college system each lack a centralized strategy for doing so. The audit recommended administrations take a stronger leadership role. That includes tracking basic data, such as how many students need a place to live, and ensuring schools provide clear information for students on housing costs and assistance programs.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12059952/waymo-continues-to-increase-its-footprint-in-los-angeles",
"authors": [
"11739"
],
"programs": [
"news_72"
],
"categories": [
"news_33520",
"news_34018"
],
"tags": [
"news_34420",
"news_33638",
"news_25675",
"news_35985",
"news_21998",
"news_21268",
"news_20576"
],
"featImg": "news_12059953",
"label": "source_news_12059952"
},
"news_12057798": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12057798",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12057798",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1759530538000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "california-gives-uber-lyft-drivers-collective-bargaining-rights",
"title": "California Gives Uber, Lyft Drivers Collective Bargaining Rights",
"publishDate": 1759530538,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "California Gives Uber, Lyft Drivers Collective Bargaining Rights | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>Hundreds of thousands of ride-hailing app drivers gained a path to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12034860/california-bill-would-allow-uber-lyft-drivers-bargain-collectively\">negotiate a first union contract\u003c/a> with Uber and Lyft, even as they remain classified as independent contractors, under legislation signed Friday by Gov. Gavin Newsom.\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The law was hailed as a milestone for app-based drivers in their yearslong battle to expand workplace rights, though critics of the measure said drivers will face serious hurdles to convince the tech giants to raise their pay and benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We are now empowered to affect the conditions and the wages of the drivers,” said Joseph Augusto, who has driven for Uber and Lyft in the Bay Area for more than 10 years. “We are looking forward to building a union and trying to negotiate with Uber and Lyft. This is a step forward. It’s going to take a lot more work, but this is the beginning.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ride-hail drivers in California have \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11928844/rideshare-drivers-rally-for-rights-announce-new-statewide-union\">formed unions\u003c/a> in the past, but the app-based transportation giants weren’t required to bargain with them. AB 1340 by Assemblymembers Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, and Marc Berman, D-Menlo Park, will change that starting Jan. 1 for drivers’ unions certified by a state board.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber, Lyft and other gig companies \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12034860/california-bill-would-allow-uber-lyft-drivers-bargain-collectively\">successfully fought\u003c/a> to classify drivers as independent contractors in a 2020 California ballot measure. Under federal law, most private sector employees have the right to collectively bargain and receive benefits such as minimum wage and overtime; independent contractors typically do not.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033653\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12033653\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/IMG_1196-scaled-e1759530132238.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Uber’s headquarters in San Francisco’s Mission Bay neighborhood on Oct. 12, 2022. \u003ccite>(Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The new legislation requires app-based transportation companies and certified unions to negotiate in good faith over issues such as driver deactivations, paid leave and earnings. It also protects gig drivers from retaliation and offers the opportunity to reach an industry-wide contract.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Public Employment Relations Board is set to enforce the provisions, including by overseeing union elections and bargaining, mediating disputes and determining whether any unfair labor practices occurred.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber and Lyft initially opposed the measure, arguing that it would increase the price of rides and exclude most drivers who don’t work a significant number of hours per week. But the companies changed their stance in August, \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/08/29/governor-newsom-pro-tem-mcguire-speaker-rivas-announce-support-for-legislation-empowering-gig-workers-improving-rideshare-affordability/\">in exchange\u003c/a> for significant reductions in insurance requirements through another bill, SB 371.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Opponents to that bill argued that the concessions, which are expected to save the companies money by lowering the underinsured motorist coverage from $1 million to $60,000 per person, will shift the financial burden from serious accidents to vulnerable Californians and hospitals. The companies said the move will help them reduce the price of ride-hail services.[aside postID=news_12033648 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/240625-UBERSANJOSE-JG-1-1-1020x680.jpg']“AB 1340 and SB 371 together represent a compromise that lowers costs for riders while creating stronger voices for drivers — demonstrating how industry, labor, and lawmakers can work together to deliver real solutions,” Ramona Prieto, Uber’s head of public policy for California, said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Uber and Lyft, drivers enjoy the flexibility to set their own schedules and an employee model threatens the companies’ survival. The 2020 ballot measure backed by the companies, Proposition 22, promised drivers would receive at least 120% of the local minimum wage, a health care stipend of up to $426 for those working a certain number of hours and accident insurance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But many ride-hail drivers say they have seen their real wages slip since, while the companies became profitable. Researchers at the UC Berkeley Labor Center \u003ca href=\"https://laborcenter.berkeley.edu/gig-passenger-and-delivery-driver-pay-in-five-metro-areas/\">found\u003c/a> last year that California passenger drivers made less than the state’s minimum wage, after car expenses and excluding tips.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>AB 1340 restricts the organizations that may be certified to represent drivers to those that have experience negotiating a labor contract or that are affiliated with such a union. Supporters of the measure said the requirements will ensure legitimate organizations have the resources to represent what could become a very large statewide bargaining bloc.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rideshare Drivers United, an organization with more than 20,000 California gig driver members, said the conditions could unduly benefit the Service Employees International Union, a major labor group that sponsored AB 1340 and backed a similar initiative in Massachusetts that voters approved last fall. Jason Munderloh, who began driving for Uber and Lyft in San Francisco 11 years ago, said he is also concerned that the new law \u003ca href=\"https://www.caaa.org/?pg=latestnews&blAction=showEntry&blogEntry=130853#:~:text=AB%201340%20offers%20a%20state,the%20traditional%20workers'%20compensation%20system.\">does not guarantee\u003c/a> the right to strike, a key to union leverage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11986560\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11986560\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut.jpg\" alt=\"A car with a Lyft sign drives with a black flag in the window.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rideshare drivers form a row to block the street in front of the DoorDash headquarters in San Francisco on Nov. 3, 2021, during a protest for fair wages and employee protections. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s a missed opportunity,” said Munderloh, who volunteers with Rideshare Drivers United. “We’re going to be in what might be a very long fight. We need to start on the right foot. And we need a very strong [law]. And I just don’t see that that’s the way AB 1340 is.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Munderloh pointed to the difficulties unionized employees covered by the National Labor Relations Act have had in securing a first contract with Starbucks, Amazon and other large corporations. Employer \u003ca href=\"https://www.ilr.cornell.edu/news/research/bronfenbrenner-outlines-employer-anti-union-efforts-congress\">opposition\u003c/a> and the lack of financial penalties for unfair labor practices under that federal law make it difficult for some employees to ever win a first union contract, according to researchers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s new legislation allows ride-hail drivers to engage in protected union activities, such as a work stoppage. But the state can’t guarantee the right to strike because of federal antitrust laws, according to Scott Kronland, an attorney with Altshuler Berzon in San Francisco who advised the SEIU on AB 1340.[aside postID=news_12056553 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/LegalAide.jpg']It’s yet to be seen whether federal courts could see striking ride-hail drivers as businesses banding together to illegally reduce competition, since they are not employees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a very complicated bill, but there are significant legal constraints,” said Kronland, who argued a challenge to Proposition 22 on behalf of several drivers and unions. “And basically, this is the best you are going to do with Prop 22 and federal antitrust laws until you can change them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>AB 1340 became possible after the California Court of Appeals in that case struck down language that prevented state lawmakers from authorizing collective bargaining rights.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David Weil, a professor of social policy and economics at Brandeis University, said he was skeptical that a deal embraced by the tech giants would significantly benefit drivers in the long run, even if workers can get to the bargaining table. Uber and Lyft control their drivers’ ever-changing rates, what rides they have access to and how much riders will pay by crunching data through an algorithm that works to maximize the companies’ profits, he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Uber and Lyft, because of their vast control of information and algorithms, are always in a position where they have the advantage. … To borrow a gambling term, it’s always going to be the house that always wins relative to the drivers,” said Weil, who led the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division during the Obama administration. “They’re not going to surrender their ability to set prices and their ability to hold all the cards.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This comes as Uber and Lyft continue to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12033648/uber-lyft-withheld-billions-in-pay-california-alleges-settlement-talks-are-underway\">negotiate a settlement\u003c/a> with California, as well as the cities of San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego, which sued the companies over the alleged withholding of wages for thousands of drivers during a period of time before Proposition 22 passed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drivers like Munderloh are demanding that the state and cities get an agreement that recoups billions of dollars in back wages and benefits, as well as raises driver pay going forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The best way for drivers to improve what we’re being paid is actually the wage theft lawsuit that’s going on,” he said. “And the union struggle that we’re having here with AB 1340 is a longer-term issue.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "Critics say the law signed Friday by Gov. Gavin Newsom doesn’t do enough to help level the power imbalance between tech giants and drivers.",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1759533767,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 25,
"wordCount": 1413
},
"headData": {
"title": "California Gives Uber, Lyft Drivers Collective Bargaining Rights | KQED",
"description": "Critics say the law signed Friday by Gov. Gavin Newsom doesn’t do enough to help level the power imbalance between tech giants and drivers.",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "California Gives Uber, Lyft Drivers Collective Bargaining Rights",
"datePublished": "2025-10-03T15:28:58-07:00",
"dateModified": "2025-10-03T16:22:47-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"primaryCategory": {
"termId": 34551,
"slug": "labor",
"name": "Labor"
},
"sticky": false,
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12057798",
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12057798/california-gives-uber-lyft-drivers-collective-bargaining-rights",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Hundreds of thousands of ride-hailing app drivers gained a path to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12034860/california-bill-would-allow-uber-lyft-drivers-bargain-collectively\">negotiate a first union contract\u003c/a> with Uber and Lyft, even as they remain classified as independent contractors, under legislation signed Friday by Gov. Gavin Newsom.\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The law was hailed as a milestone for app-based drivers in their yearslong battle to expand workplace rights, though critics of the measure said drivers will face serious hurdles to convince the tech giants to raise their pay and benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We are now empowered to affect the conditions and the wages of the drivers,” said Joseph Augusto, who has driven for Uber and Lyft in the Bay Area for more than 10 years. “We are looking forward to building a union and trying to negotiate with Uber and Lyft. This is a step forward. It’s going to take a lot more work, but this is the beginning.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ride-hail drivers in California have \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11928844/rideshare-drivers-rally-for-rights-announce-new-statewide-union\">formed unions\u003c/a> in the past, but the app-based transportation giants weren’t required to bargain with them. AB 1340 by Assemblymembers Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, and Marc Berman, D-Menlo Park, will change that starting Jan. 1 for drivers’ unions certified by a state board.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber, Lyft and other gig companies \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12034860/california-bill-would-allow-uber-lyft-drivers-bargain-collectively\">successfully fought\u003c/a> to classify drivers as independent contractors in a 2020 California ballot measure. Under federal law, most private sector employees have the right to collectively bargain and receive benefits such as minimum wage and overtime; independent contractors typically do not.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033653\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12033653\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/IMG_1196-scaled-e1759530132238.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Uber’s headquarters in San Francisco’s Mission Bay neighborhood on Oct. 12, 2022. \u003ccite>(Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The new legislation requires app-based transportation companies and certified unions to negotiate in good faith over issues such as driver deactivations, paid leave and earnings. It also protects gig drivers from retaliation and offers the opportunity to reach an industry-wide contract.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Public Employment Relations Board is set to enforce the provisions, including by overseeing union elections and bargaining, mediating disputes and determining whether any unfair labor practices occurred.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber and Lyft initially opposed the measure, arguing that it would increase the price of rides and exclude most drivers who don’t work a significant number of hours per week. But the companies changed their stance in August, \u003ca href=\"https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/08/29/governor-newsom-pro-tem-mcguire-speaker-rivas-announce-support-for-legislation-empowering-gig-workers-improving-rideshare-affordability/\">in exchange\u003c/a> for significant reductions in insurance requirements through another bill, SB 371.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Opponents to that bill argued that the concessions, which are expected to save the companies money by lowering the underinsured motorist coverage from $1 million to $60,000 per person, will shift the financial burden from serious accidents to vulnerable Californians and hospitals. The companies said the move will help them reduce the price of ride-hail services.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12033648",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/240625-UBERSANJOSE-JG-1-1-1020x680.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“AB 1340 and SB 371 together represent a compromise that lowers costs for riders while creating stronger voices for drivers — demonstrating how industry, labor, and lawmakers can work together to deliver real solutions,” Ramona Prieto, Uber’s head of public policy for California, said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Uber and Lyft, drivers enjoy the flexibility to set their own schedules and an employee model threatens the companies’ survival. The 2020 ballot measure backed by the companies, Proposition 22, promised drivers would receive at least 120% of the local minimum wage, a health care stipend of up to $426 for those working a certain number of hours and accident insurance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But many ride-hail drivers say they have seen their real wages slip since, while the companies became profitable. Researchers at the UC Berkeley Labor Center \u003ca href=\"https://laborcenter.berkeley.edu/gig-passenger-and-delivery-driver-pay-in-five-metro-areas/\">found\u003c/a> last year that California passenger drivers made less than the state’s minimum wage, after car expenses and excluding tips.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>AB 1340 restricts the organizations that may be certified to represent drivers to those that have experience negotiating a labor contract or that are affiliated with such a union. Supporters of the measure said the requirements will ensure legitimate organizations have the resources to represent what could become a very large statewide bargaining bloc.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rideshare Drivers United, an organization with more than 20,000 California gig driver members, said the conditions could unduly benefit the Service Employees International Union, a major labor group that sponsored AB 1340 and backed a similar initiative in Massachusetts that voters approved last fall. Jason Munderloh, who began driving for Uber and Lyft in San Francisco 11 years ago, said he is also concerned that the new law \u003ca href=\"https://www.caaa.org/?pg=latestnews&blAction=showEntry&blogEntry=130853#:~:text=AB%201340%20offers%20a%20state,the%20traditional%20workers'%20compensation%20system.\">does not guarantee\u003c/a> the right to strike, a key to union leverage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11986560\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11986560\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut.jpg\" alt=\"A car with a Lyft sign drives with a black flag in the window.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/05/001_SanFrancisco_GigWorkersProtest_11032021_qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rideshare drivers form a row to block the street in front of the DoorDash headquarters in San Francisco on Nov. 3, 2021, during a protest for fair wages and employee protections. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s a missed opportunity,” said Munderloh, who volunteers with Rideshare Drivers United. “We’re going to be in what might be a very long fight. We need to start on the right foot. And we need a very strong [law]. And I just don’t see that that’s the way AB 1340 is.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Munderloh pointed to the difficulties unionized employees covered by the National Labor Relations Act have had in securing a first contract with Starbucks, Amazon and other large corporations. Employer \u003ca href=\"https://www.ilr.cornell.edu/news/research/bronfenbrenner-outlines-employer-anti-union-efforts-congress\">opposition\u003c/a> and the lack of financial penalties for unfair labor practices under that federal law make it difficult for some employees to ever win a first union contract, according to researchers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s new legislation allows ride-hail drivers to engage in protected union activities, such as a work stoppage. But the state can’t guarantee the right to strike because of federal antitrust laws, according to Scott Kronland, an attorney with Altshuler Berzon in San Francisco who advised the SEIU on AB 1340.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12056553",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/LegalAide.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>It’s yet to be seen whether federal courts could see striking ride-hail drivers as businesses banding together to illegally reduce competition, since they are not employees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a very complicated bill, but there are significant legal constraints,” said Kronland, who argued a challenge to Proposition 22 on behalf of several drivers and unions. “And basically, this is the best you are going to do with Prop 22 and federal antitrust laws until you can change them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>AB 1340 became possible after the California Court of Appeals in that case struck down language that prevented state lawmakers from authorizing collective bargaining rights.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David Weil, a professor of social policy and economics at Brandeis University, said he was skeptical that a deal embraced by the tech giants would significantly benefit drivers in the long run, even if workers can get to the bargaining table. Uber and Lyft control their drivers’ ever-changing rates, what rides they have access to and how much riders will pay by crunching data through an algorithm that works to maximize the companies’ profits, he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Uber and Lyft, because of their vast control of information and algorithms, are always in a position where they have the advantage. … To borrow a gambling term, it’s always going to be the house that always wins relative to the drivers,” said Weil, who led the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division during the Obama administration. “They’re not going to surrender their ability to set prices and their ability to hold all the cards.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This comes as Uber and Lyft continue to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12033648/uber-lyft-withheld-billions-in-pay-california-alleges-settlement-talks-are-underway\">negotiate a settlement\u003c/a> with California, as well as the cities of San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego, which sued the companies over the alleged withholding of wages for thousands of drivers during a period of time before Proposition 22 passed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drivers like Munderloh are demanding that the state and cities get an agreement that recoups billions of dollars in back wages and benefits, as well as raises driver pay going forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The best way for drivers to improve what we’re being paid is actually the wage theft lawsuit that’s going on,” he said. “And the union struggle that we’re having here with AB 1340 is a longer-term issue.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12057798/california-gives-uber-lyft-drivers-collective-bargaining-rights",
"authors": [
"8659"
],
"categories": [
"news_31795",
"news_1758",
"news_34551",
"news_8",
"news_13",
"news_1397"
],
"tags": [
"news_18538",
"news_27626",
"news_16",
"news_19904",
"news_32652",
"news_4524",
"news_25675",
"news_20517",
"news_4523"
],
"featImg": "news_11997574",
"label": "news"
},
"news_12002988": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12002988",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12002988",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1725485406000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "some-gig-workers-say-they-are-seeing-little-of-prop-22-promises-and-lack-of-enforcement-from-state",
"title": "Gig Workers Are Seeing Little of Prop. 22 Promises — and Lack of Enforcement From State",
"publishDate": 1725485406,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "Gig Workers Are Seeing Little of Prop. 22 Promises — and Lack of Enforcement From State | KQED",
"labelTerm": {},
"content": "\u003cp>Nearly four years after California voters approved better wages and health benefits for ride-hailing drivers and delivery workers, no one is actually ensuring they are provided, according to state agencies, interviews with workers and a review of wage claims filed with the state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Voters mandated the benefits in November 2020 when they approved \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/tag/proposition-22/\">Proposition 22\u003c/a>. The ballot initiative was backed by gig-work companies that wanted to keep their workers classified as independent contractors and were resisting a \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2024/06/ab-5-california-uber/\">2019 state law\u003c/a> that would have considered them employees. Prop. 22 stipulated that gig workers would remain independent contractors but be treated better.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state Industrial Relations Department, which handles wage claims, now tells CalMatters it does not have jurisdiction to resolve those related to Prop. 22, citing a \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2024/07/prop-22-california-gig-work-law-upheld/\">July 25 California Supreme Court ruling\u003c/a> that upheld the law and therefore maintains that gig workers are not employees. That effectively passes enforcement responsibility on to the state attorney general, whose office was noncommittal when asked about its plans, saying that it does not adjudicate individual claims but does prosecute companies that systematically violate the law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lack of enforcement leaves in limbo workers who in many cases have already been waiting for months or years for the state to resolve their complaints. Workers have filed 54 claims related to Prop. 22 since it went into effect in December 2020. At least 32 of them are unresolved, state records obtained by CalMatters show, although at least two of those are due to workers not following through.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Of the unresolved claims, one goes back to 2021, several are from 2022 and 2023, and about half are from this year, through May.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Emails included with the claims show that the Industrial Relations Department told one worker it was severely understaffed, and seven others, starting in 2022, that it did not have jurisdiction to help them since they were independent contractors rather than employees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although the number of claims filed with the state represent just a fraction of the more than 1 million gig workers in California, they give a glimpse into what happens when workers turn to the state for help instead of the companies that backed Prop. 22.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Workers say in the claims, and in interviews with CalMatters, that companies such as Uber, Lyft and Instacart failed to provide higher wages and health care stipends under the law, and that the companies’ representatives sometimes act confused or take a long time to handle their requests for Prop. 22 benefits. The gig companies have touted the law as something that has boosted pay and benefits, and have said it has helped gig workers hang on to work they can do whenever they want.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Laura Robinson is among the workers who have had to aggressively pursue what they believe they’re owed under the law. For the past year, she has filed claims with the state and fought two different gig-work companies for different benefits promised under Prop. 22. \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12003065\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 600px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/052024_Laura-Robinson_ZS_CM_09-1-800x1200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"1000\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12003065\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Laura Robinson in her home in Irvine on May 20, 2024. Robinson, who was in a car accident last year while working for Instacart, was recently informed she will receive occupational accident insurance after months of effort. \u003ccite>(Laura Robinson in her home in Irvine on May 20, 2024. Robinson, who was in a car accident last year while working for Instacart, was recently informed she will receive occupational accident insurance after months of effort. Photo by Zaydee Sanchez/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp> She was making a delivery for Instacart a year ago, she said, when a driver making a U-turn hit her, totaling her car. Now, she said, she has lingering back pain, and has only been able to make a total of a few deliveries over the past several months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson, who lives in Irvine, tried to get Instacart to retroactively provide her with occupational accident insurance as required under Prop. 22.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When she first contacted Instacart about the collision, “four or five different (representatives) told me on chat ‘we don’t provide insurance,’ but I told them this is California,” Robinson said. “Finally someone said ‘oh yeah, I know what you’re talking about.’ ” Robinson had some difficulties documenting the accident, because, she said, the responding Torrance Police Department officer rode away on his motorcycle without writing a report. But after about seven months, she finally heard back from Zurich, Instacart’s insurance provider. She received a lump sum, and monthly payments for the time that she has been largely unable to work, according to bank statements and emails from Zurich to her, which she shared with CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instacart spokesperson Charlotte Healow said all the company’s shopper support agents should know about “shopper injury protection” and that there is information in the app about how to go about filing claims. But Robinson showed CalMatters several screenshots of her chats with support agents who either thought she was asking about health insurance or who told her someone would email her back about her situation — which eventually happened, though it took a few tries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson said she had also struggled to get a smaller gig platform, food delivery app Curri, to comply with the law. Under Prop. 22, ride-hailing and delivery gig companies are supposed to pay her 120% of minimum wage for the time she spends driving, making up for any shortfall in the pay she receives, but Curri had not done so, she said. Not knowing where to turn, she asked a few different state agencies for help, including the attorney general’s office. She even lodged a complaint with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s National Consumer Complaint Database. After several months, the Industrial Relations Department scheduled a hearing for her case for Aug. 29. Last week, the department told her the company decided to settle and pay her what it owed, according to emails and a release she signed that she shared with CalMatters. Curri’s marketing director referred CalMatters to the company’s legal department, which did not return three emailed requests for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson saw the upside of Prop. 22 after it passed. She liked being able to continue setting her own hours and saw a bump in her earnings delivering for Grubhub due to the law. But she is now frustrated about how tough it was to figure out who’s supposed to be upholding it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s not helpful if it’s not enforced or applied,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson said the deputy labor commissioner she was in touch with throughout the process of pursuing her claim against Curri told her last week that because Prop. 22 was upheld by the state Supreme Court — effectively ensuring gig workers cannot be considered employees — the department would no longer be handling similar cases because it does not have jurisdiction over independent contractors.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>What gig workers are complaining about\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Prop. 22-related wage claims reviewed by CalMatters were part of a larger set of nearly 200 claims that gig workers filed with the Industrial Relations Department since the law took effect in December 2020. Citing the California Public Records Act, CalMatters sought all wage claims in that timeframe involving gig companies, but the state did not provide any claims against DoorDash, which is one of the biggest of the app-based gig companies. A department spokesperson could not explain why.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most of the claimants sought delayed or unpaid wages, including adjustments owed under Prop. 22. Others sought health care stipends required under the gig-work law, and one driver said he sought occupational accident insurance but did not receive it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The claims also shed light on the mechanics of how app companies are allegedly withholding wages. In them, some gig workers claimed that they were deactivated — kicked off or fired by the app — before receiving all their wages. [aside label=\"Related Stories\" tag=\"proposition-22\"]The records also indicate the state had trouble holding app companies to account in a timely fashion. In emails about the claims, some workers frequently asked for updates about their cases and complained about limited communications from the state. This prompted one supervisor in the Industrial Relations Department’s San Francisco office to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/CM-1006930-PRA-HQ-46848.pdf\">respond by email\u003c/a> on May 30, 2024, seemingly noting that gig workers’ complaints were just a fraction of the array of worker complaints the state fields: “I am working with 40% staff shortage. There are over 3,000 cases, most of which are older than yours, and only seven people (total) to handle them.” The department did not respond to requests for comment on whether this shortfall persists.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Monetary wage claims ranged from about $2 to nearly $420,000. Most — 54% — were against ride-hailing and delivery giant Uber and 25% were against its rides competitor Lyft. There were 17 claims against grocery-delivery app maker Instacart, seven against food-delivery platform Grubhub, four against Target-owned delivery service Shipt and three against UPS-owned delivery service Roadie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Industrial Relations Department has long tried to resolve gig workers’ wage disputes. The labor commissioner, who heads the department’s Labor Standards Enforcement Division, still has pending \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/Lawsuits-Uber-Lyft.html\">wage-theft lawsuits\u003c/a> against Uber and Lyft that it filed in 2020 on behalf of about 5,000 workers with wage claims going back to 2017.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those cases predate Prop. 22, originating during a period when gig workers were misclassified and should have been considered employees under California law, the labor commissioner argues in the wage-theft suits. After Prop. 22 passed, opponents challenged it and the case ended up before the California Supreme Court, which upheld the law in July, effectively affirming that drivers are independent contractors, not employees. A department spokesperson, Peter Melton, said the ruling means the department can no longer handle claims about missing wage adjustments under the earnings guarantee, unpaid health care stipends or other aspects of the law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Department representatives made similar statements to workers even before Prop. 22 was upheld, the claims records show. An email response, dated March 26, 2024, from the department to an Uber driver \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/CM-1007106-PRA-HQ-46848.pdf\">stated\u003c/a>: “The Division of Labor Standards Enforcement enforces employment law. We cannot enforce Prop 22 earnings because they aren’t ‘wages’ earned by ‘employees’.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This echoes the position lawyers for Uber and Lyft took in some of the records when responding to wage claims. They asked the state to dismiss such claims, writing in \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/CM-1003300-PRA-HQ-46848.pdf\">one email\u003c/a>: “As of December 16, 2020, drivers using Lyft’s platform are considered independent contractors by statute and, thus, cannot seek relief under the Labor Code.” [aside label=\"More Coverage\" tag=\"gig-economy\"]Now that the department has disavowed responsibility for Prop. 22 claims, the question remains: Who will enforce the law?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scott Kronland, the attorney for Service Employees International Union California who unsuccessfully argued before the state Supreme Court that it should throw out Prop. 22, told CalMatters: “I’ve also heard from drivers that they’re not getting the things they’re promised by Prop. 22.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kronland said their recourse, after the ruling, is to press local prosecutors or the attorney general, who have the ability to hold companies liable for unlawful business practices under the state’s Unfair Competition Law. Still, he said “enforcement is something the Legislature could clarify.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an unsigned email response to CalMatters’ questions after the state Supreme Court decision, including whether it planned to pursue Prop.-22-related cases against gig-work companies, the attorney general’s office said gig workers can submit complaints at \u003ca href=\"http://oag.ca.gov/report\">oag.ca.gov/report\u003c/a>. The email added: “Although the Attorney General does not represent individual workers or adjudicate individual complaints by holding administrative hearings like (the Department of Industrial Relations), DOJ brings lawsuits to hold accountable companies that systematically break the law, for example through widespread violations of wage and hour standards. Reports or complaints of employer misconduct are an important part of our work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When CalMatters previously asked the attorney general’s office for copies of any wage complaints it had received from gig workers thus far, a spokesperson responded that the office was representing the state in its effort to defend \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2024/05/prop-22-oral-arguments/\">Prop. 22 before the California Supreme Court\u003c/a> — and referred CalMatters back to the Industrial Relations Department.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>What gig companies share about Prop. 22’s impact\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Gig companies have said that, due in part to the initiative’s earnings guarantee, workers now make more than $30 an hour. But a May study by the UC Berkeley Labor Center found that, for California ride-hailing drivers, average earnings after expenses, not including tips, is about $7.12 an hour, and for delivery workers, $5.93. With tips, drivers’ average hourly earnings are $9.09 an hour, and $13.62 for delivery workers, the study found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To better understand the impact of Prop. 22, CalMatters asked each of the four largest gig companies — Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and Instacart — the following:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>How much they have spent on delivering on each of Prop. 22’s four main promises:\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>120% of minimum wage earnings guarantee\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Health care stipends\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Occupational accident insurance\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Accidental death insurance\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>How many gig workers have received each of the promised benefits.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Whether they have passed on costs to consumers, and if so, where they account for those customer fees in their public financial filings.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>How they handle complaints or issues related to their promises.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Lyft said 85% of California Lyft drivers who have driven for the company since Prop. 22 went into effect have received at least one wage “top up” — the additional money drivers receive under the earnings guarantee — through the end of the fourth quarter of 2023, though spokesperson Shadawn Reddick-Smith would not provide specific numbers of Lyft drivers in the state. None of the other companies would give any information on their delivery of the wage guarantee.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instacart spokesperson Healow said the company has paid out about $40 million in health care subsidies to its delivery workers, which she said number in the tens of thousands in the state. She also said about 11% of California shoppers have become eligible for a health care stipend since Prop. 22 took effect, and that 28% of those eligible shoppers have redeemed their subsidy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To qualify for the health care stipends, workers must work at least 15 hours a week each quarter, and be enrolled in health insurance that is not provided by an employer or the government. Because the gig companies won’t share how many workers have received the stipends, CalMatters asked the state health insurance exchange, Covered California, if it had data that might help shed some light. Seven percent of the 1.6 million people who used Covered California reported doing gig work in a 2023 survey, said a spokesperson for the exchange, Jagdip Dhillon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>DoorDash spokesperson Parker Dorrough said that just 11% of eligible couriers used the health care stipend in the fourth quarter of 2023 but that 80% of DoorDash’s delivery workers had health care coverage through another source, such as their full-time job or spouse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>None of the other companies would give any information on their delivery of the stipend. Lyft’s Reddick-Smith said 80% of California Lyft drivers already have health care coverage, including 13% who bought their own coverage (this second group is the set of drivers who qualified for the stipend).\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12003067\" class=\"wp-caption center\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1721\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12003067\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-800x538.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-1020x686.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-1536x1033.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-2048x1377.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-1920x1291.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A sign is posted on a car as gig workers with the California Gig Workers Union stage a rally against Proposition 22 outside of the California First Appellate District Court of Appeal on December 13, 2022 in San Francisco, California. \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>None of the four companies provided the numbers of workers who have used occupational accident or accidental death insurance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>None of the companies would disclose how they account for the fees they charge customers for Prop. 22 expenses, nor are the fees included in their publicly available financial filings. Instacart said it does not charge customers for expenses associated with Prop. 22. Lyft said its per-ride service fee includes a 75-cent “California Driver Benefits Fee.” Uber charges customers a “CA Driver Benefits” fee for each ride and delivery in the state and spokesperson Zahid Arab said the company has “invested more than we collected in fees.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber published a blog post after CalMatters’ questions, saying it has “invested” more than $1 billion in Prop. 22 benefits. Arab would not break down these benefits further.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As for complaints related to the promises, each of the companies said workers should contact support agents, whom they can usually get in touch with in the app; an Instacart spokesperson said workers can make some claims directly in the company’s app.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Seeing little from Prop. 22\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Ride-hailing driver Sergio Avedian last year helped raise public awareness of the lack of Prop. 22 enforcement. Specifically, he homed in on one narrow issue: Under the law, gig-work companies were supposed to adjust for inflation each year the reimbursement they pay to drivers for mileage. Avedian said no such adjustment had taken place for two consecutive years. And as a podcaster and contributor to the Rideshare Guy, a popular gig-work blog, he had a high profile. Avedian and a fellow eagle-eyed driver started pestering the state’s treasurer’s office, which had not published the adjusted rates as stipulated under Prop 22. The office eventually did so and, the Los Angeles Times reported, put the state’s gig workers \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/story/2023-06-01/column-uber-david-and-goliath\">on track to get back pay for the mileage expenses\u003c/a> — pay potentially worth hundreds of millions of dollars.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, a year later, Avedian is curious about gig-company math again. He has asked Uber some of the same questions CalMatters did — including how the company accounts for the driver-benefits fee it adds on to each ride or delivery. The company’s response to him was similar — it provided few specifics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides his concern about the issue as a driver, Avedian said “as a consumer who is paying into the Prop. 22 fund on every trip or delivery, I would like to know the accounting of where my money is going.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When the gig companies were campaigning for Prop. 22, they implored voters to “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7QJLgdQaf4\">help create a better path forward for drivers\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Avedian and other gig workers in California say their paths have not changed much. Many still complain about low wages, little transparency from the companies and lack of worker protections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yasha Timenovich said he has worked as a ride-hailing driver for a decade, first with Uber, now with Lyft.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I work 12, 13, 14 hours a day,” said Timenovich, who drives in the Los Angeles area. “But the time I sit and wait at LAX is not accounted for.” He said he has to work long hours to try to make sure he has enough earnings. “We’re not completely independent contractors. We’re not employees. We’re sort of a hybrid model of theirs. We’re pretty much nobody.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He also said he must obtain health insurance through Medi-Cal, California’s health care coverage for low-income residents — which in turn means he doesn’t qualify for the health care stipend. He said every driver he knows “is on Medi-Cal because they can’t afford health insurance. I don’t know anyone who has (the stipend).”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many drivers voted for Prop. 22, he said. But “what we were told was a lie.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles cm-manual-eoa-recirc wpnbha show-image image-alignleft ts-3 is-1 is-landscape cm-manual-eoa-recirc has-text-align-left\">\n\u003cdiv data-posts=\"\" data-current-post-id=\"438437\">\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "Gig companies pushed for Prop. 22, promising improved pay and benefits for California workers. But when companies fail to deliver, the state isn’t doing much to help push back.",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1725486925,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 51,
"wordCount": 3363
},
"headData": {
"title": "Gig Workers Are Seeing Little of Prop. 22 Promises — and Lack of Enforcement From State | KQED",
"description": "Gig companies pushed for Prop. 22, promising improved pay and benefits for California workers. But when companies fail to deliver, the state isn’t doing much to help push back.",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "Gig Workers Are Seeing Little of Prop. 22 Promises — and Lack of Enforcement From State",
"datePublished": "2024-09-04T14:30:06-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-09-04T14:55:25-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"source": "CalMatters",
"sourceUrl": "https://calmatters.org/economy/2024/09/gig-work-california-prop-22-enforcement/",
"sticky": false,
"nprByline": "Levi Sumagaysay, CALMatters",
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12002988",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12002988/some-gig-workers-say-they-are-seeing-little-of-prop-22-promises-and-lack-of-enforcement-from-state",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Nearly four years after California voters approved better wages and health benefits for ride-hailing drivers and delivery workers, no one is actually ensuring they are provided, according to state agencies, interviews with workers and a review of wage claims filed with the state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Voters mandated the benefits in November 2020 when they approved \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/tag/proposition-22/\">Proposition 22\u003c/a>. The ballot initiative was backed by gig-work companies that wanted to keep their workers classified as independent contractors and were resisting a \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2024/06/ab-5-california-uber/\">2019 state law\u003c/a> that would have considered them employees. Prop. 22 stipulated that gig workers would remain independent contractors but be treated better.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The state Industrial Relations Department, which handles wage claims, now tells CalMatters it does not have jurisdiction to resolve those related to Prop. 22, citing a \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2024/07/prop-22-california-gig-work-law-upheld/\">July 25 California Supreme Court ruling\u003c/a> that upheld the law and therefore maintains that gig workers are not employees. That effectively passes enforcement responsibility on to the state attorney general, whose office was noncommittal when asked about its plans, saying that it does not adjudicate individual claims but does prosecute companies that systematically violate the law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lack of enforcement leaves in limbo workers who in many cases have already been waiting for months or years for the state to resolve their complaints. Workers have filed 54 claims related to Prop. 22 since it went into effect in December 2020. At least 32 of them are unresolved, state records obtained by CalMatters show, although at least two of those are due to workers not following through.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Of the unresolved claims, one goes back to 2021, several are from 2022 and 2023, and about half are from this year, through May.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Emails included with the claims show that the Industrial Relations Department told one worker it was severely understaffed, and seven others, starting in 2022, that it did not have jurisdiction to help them since they were independent contractors rather than employees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although the number of claims filed with the state represent just a fraction of the more than 1 million gig workers in California, they give a glimpse into what happens when workers turn to the state for help instead of the companies that backed Prop. 22.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Workers say in the claims, and in interviews with CalMatters, that companies such as Uber, Lyft and Instacart failed to provide higher wages and health care stipends under the law, and that the companies’ representatives sometimes act confused or take a long time to handle their requests for Prop. 22 benefits. The gig companies have touted the law as something that has boosted pay and benefits, and have said it has helped gig workers hang on to work they can do whenever they want.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Laura Robinson is among the workers who have had to aggressively pursue what they believe they’re owed under the law. For the past year, she has filed claims with the state and fought two different gig-work companies for different benefits promised under Prop. 22. \u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12003065\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 600px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/052024_Laura-Robinson_ZS_CM_09-1-800x1200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"1000\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12003065\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Laura Robinson in her home in Irvine on May 20, 2024. Robinson, who was in a car accident last year while working for Instacart, was recently informed she will receive occupational accident insurance after months of effort. \u003ccite>(Laura Robinson in her home in Irvine on May 20, 2024. Robinson, who was in a car accident last year while working for Instacart, was recently informed she will receive occupational accident insurance after months of effort. Photo by Zaydee Sanchez/CalMatters)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp> She was making a delivery for Instacart a year ago, she said, when a driver making a U-turn hit her, totaling her car. Now, she said, she has lingering back pain, and has only been able to make a total of a few deliveries over the past several months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson, who lives in Irvine, tried to get Instacart to retroactively provide her with occupational accident insurance as required under Prop. 22.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When she first contacted Instacart about the collision, “four or five different (representatives) told me on chat ‘we don’t provide insurance,’ but I told them this is California,” Robinson said. “Finally someone said ‘oh yeah, I know what you’re talking about.’ ” Robinson had some difficulties documenting the accident, because, she said, the responding Torrance Police Department officer rode away on his motorcycle without writing a report. But after about seven months, she finally heard back from Zurich, Instacart’s insurance provider. She received a lump sum, and monthly payments for the time that she has been largely unable to work, according to bank statements and emails from Zurich to her, which she shared with CalMatters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instacart spokesperson Charlotte Healow said all the company’s shopper support agents should know about “shopper injury protection” and that there is information in the app about how to go about filing claims. But Robinson showed CalMatters several screenshots of her chats with support agents who either thought she was asking about health insurance or who told her someone would email her back about her situation — which eventually happened, though it took a few tries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson said she had also struggled to get a smaller gig platform, food delivery app Curri, to comply with the law. Under Prop. 22, ride-hailing and delivery gig companies are supposed to pay her 120% of minimum wage for the time she spends driving, making up for any shortfall in the pay she receives, but Curri had not done so, she said. Not knowing where to turn, she asked a few different state agencies for help, including the attorney general’s office. She even lodged a complaint with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s National Consumer Complaint Database. After several months, the Industrial Relations Department scheduled a hearing for her case for Aug. 29. Last week, the department told her the company decided to settle and pay her what it owed, according to emails and a release she signed that she shared with CalMatters. Curri’s marketing director referred CalMatters to the company’s legal department, which did not return three emailed requests for comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson saw the upside of Prop. 22 after it passed. She liked being able to continue setting her own hours and saw a bump in her earnings delivering for Grubhub due to the law. But she is now frustrated about how tough it was to figure out who’s supposed to be upholding it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s not helpful if it’s not enforced or applied,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson said the deputy labor commissioner she was in touch with throughout the process of pursuing her claim against Curri told her last week that because Prop. 22 was upheld by the state Supreme Court — effectively ensuring gig workers cannot be considered employees — the department would no longer be handling similar cases because it does not have jurisdiction over independent contractors.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>What gig workers are complaining about\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Prop. 22-related wage claims reviewed by CalMatters were part of a larger set of nearly 200 claims that gig workers filed with the Industrial Relations Department since the law took effect in December 2020. Citing the California Public Records Act, CalMatters sought all wage claims in that timeframe involving gig companies, but the state did not provide any claims against DoorDash, which is one of the biggest of the app-based gig companies. A department spokesperson could not explain why.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most of the claimants sought delayed or unpaid wages, including adjustments owed under Prop. 22. Others sought health care stipends required under the gig-work law, and one driver said he sought occupational accident insurance but did not receive it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The claims also shed light on the mechanics of how app companies are allegedly withholding wages. In them, some gig workers claimed that they were deactivated — kicked off or fired by the app — before receiving all their wages. \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "Related Stories ",
"tag": "proposition-22"
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The records also indicate the state had trouble holding app companies to account in a timely fashion. In emails about the claims, some workers frequently asked for updates about their cases and complained about limited communications from the state. This prompted one supervisor in the Industrial Relations Department’s San Francisco office to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/CM-1006930-PRA-HQ-46848.pdf\">respond by email\u003c/a> on May 30, 2024, seemingly noting that gig workers’ complaints were just a fraction of the array of worker complaints the state fields: “I am working with 40% staff shortage. There are over 3,000 cases, most of which are older than yours, and only seven people (total) to handle them.” The department did not respond to requests for comment on whether this shortfall persists.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Monetary wage claims ranged from about $2 to nearly $420,000. Most — 54% — were against ride-hailing and delivery giant Uber and 25% were against its rides competitor Lyft. There were 17 claims against grocery-delivery app maker Instacart, seven against food-delivery platform Grubhub, four against Target-owned delivery service Shipt and three against UPS-owned delivery service Roadie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Industrial Relations Department has long tried to resolve gig workers’ wage disputes. The labor commissioner, who heads the department’s Labor Standards Enforcement Division, still has pending \u003ca href=\"https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/Lawsuits-Uber-Lyft.html\">wage-theft lawsuits\u003c/a> against Uber and Lyft that it filed in 2020 on behalf of about 5,000 workers with wage claims going back to 2017.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those cases predate Prop. 22, originating during a period when gig workers were misclassified and should have been considered employees under California law, the labor commissioner argues in the wage-theft suits. After Prop. 22 passed, opponents challenged it and the case ended up before the California Supreme Court, which upheld the law in July, effectively affirming that drivers are independent contractors, not employees. A department spokesperson, Peter Melton, said the ruling means the department can no longer handle claims about missing wage adjustments under the earnings guarantee, unpaid health care stipends or other aspects of the law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Department representatives made similar statements to workers even before Prop. 22 was upheld, the claims records show. An email response, dated March 26, 2024, from the department to an Uber driver \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/CM-1007106-PRA-HQ-46848.pdf\">stated\u003c/a>: “The Division of Labor Standards Enforcement enforces employment law. We cannot enforce Prop 22 earnings because they aren’t ‘wages’ earned by ‘employees’.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This echoes the position lawyers for Uber and Lyft took in some of the records when responding to wage claims. They asked the state to dismiss such claims, writing in \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/CM-1003300-PRA-HQ-46848.pdf\">one email\u003c/a>: “As of December 16, 2020, drivers using Lyft’s platform are considered independent contractors by statute and, thus, cannot seek relief under the Labor Code.” \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "More Coverage ",
"tag": "gig-economy"
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Now that the department has disavowed responsibility for Prop. 22 claims, the question remains: Who will enforce the law?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scott Kronland, the attorney for Service Employees International Union California who unsuccessfully argued before the state Supreme Court that it should throw out Prop. 22, told CalMatters: “I’ve also heard from drivers that they’re not getting the things they’re promised by Prop. 22.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Kronland said their recourse, after the ruling, is to press local prosecutors or the attorney general, who have the ability to hold companies liable for unlawful business practices under the state’s Unfair Competition Law. Still, he said “enforcement is something the Legislature could clarify.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an unsigned email response to CalMatters’ questions after the state Supreme Court decision, including whether it planned to pursue Prop.-22-related cases against gig-work companies, the attorney general’s office said gig workers can submit complaints at \u003ca href=\"http://oag.ca.gov/report\">oag.ca.gov/report\u003c/a>. The email added: “Although the Attorney General does not represent individual workers or adjudicate individual complaints by holding administrative hearings like (the Department of Industrial Relations), DOJ brings lawsuits to hold accountable companies that systematically break the law, for example through widespread violations of wage and hour standards. Reports or complaints of employer misconduct are an important part of our work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When CalMatters previously asked the attorney general’s office for copies of any wage complaints it had received from gig workers thus far, a spokesperson responded that the office was representing the state in its effort to defend \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2024/05/prop-22-oral-arguments/\">Prop. 22 before the California Supreme Court\u003c/a> — and referred CalMatters back to the Industrial Relations Department.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>What gig companies share about Prop. 22’s impact\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Gig companies have said that, due in part to the initiative’s earnings guarantee, workers now make more than $30 an hour. But a May study by the UC Berkeley Labor Center found that, for California ride-hailing drivers, average earnings after expenses, not including tips, is about $7.12 an hour, and for delivery workers, $5.93. With tips, drivers’ average hourly earnings are $9.09 an hour, and $13.62 for delivery workers, the study found.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To better understand the impact of Prop. 22, CalMatters asked each of the four largest gig companies — Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and Instacart — the following:\u003c/p>\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>How much they have spent on delivering on each of Prop. 22’s four main promises:\n\u003cul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n\u003cli>120% of minimum wage earnings guarantee\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Health care stipends\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Occupational accident insurance\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Accidental death insurance\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>How many gig workers have received each of the promised benefits.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>Whether they have passed on costs to consumers, and if so, where they account for those customer fees in their public financial filings.\u003c/li>\n\u003cli>How they handle complaints or issues related to their promises.\u003c/li>\n\u003c/ul>\n\u003cp>Lyft said 85% of California Lyft drivers who have driven for the company since Prop. 22 went into effect have received at least one wage “top up” — the additional money drivers receive under the earnings guarantee — through the end of the fourth quarter of 2023, though spokesperson Shadawn Reddick-Smith would not provide specific numbers of Lyft drivers in the state. None of the other companies would give any information on their delivery of the wage guarantee.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Instacart spokesperson Healow said the company has paid out about $40 million in health care subsidies to its delivery workers, which she said number in the tens of thousands in the state. She also said about 11% of California shoppers have become eligible for a health care stipend since Prop. 22 took effect, and that 28% of those eligible shoppers have redeemed their subsidy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To qualify for the health care stipends, workers must work at least 15 hours a week each quarter, and be enrolled in health insurance that is not provided by an employer or the government. Because the gig companies won’t share how many workers have received the stipends, CalMatters asked the state health insurance exchange, Covered California, if it had data that might help shed some light. Seven percent of the 1.6 million people who used Covered California reported doing gig work in a 2023 survey, said a spokesperson for the exchange, Jagdip Dhillon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>DoorDash spokesperson Parker Dorrough said that just 11% of eligible couriers used the health care stipend in the fourth quarter of 2023 but that 80% of DoorDash’s delivery workers had health care coverage through another source, such as their full-time job or spouse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>None of the other companies would give any information on their delivery of the stipend. Lyft’s Reddick-Smith said 80% of California Lyft drivers already have health care coverage, including 13% who bought their own coverage (this second group is the set of drivers who qualified for the stipend).\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12003067\" class=\"wp-caption center\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1721\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12003067\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-800x538.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-1020x686.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-1536x1033.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-2048x1377.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/09/GettyImages-1448862196-1-1920x1291.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A sign is posted on a car as gig workers with the California Gig Workers Union stage a rally against Proposition 22 outside of the California First Appellate District Court of Appeal on December 13, 2022 in San Francisco, California. \u003ccite>(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>None of the four companies provided the numbers of workers who have used occupational accident or accidental death insurance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>None of the companies would disclose how they account for the fees they charge customers for Prop. 22 expenses, nor are the fees included in their publicly available financial filings. Instacart said it does not charge customers for expenses associated with Prop. 22. Lyft said its per-ride service fee includes a 75-cent “California Driver Benefits Fee.” Uber charges customers a “CA Driver Benefits” fee for each ride and delivery in the state and spokesperson Zahid Arab said the company has “invested more than we collected in fees.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber published a blog post after CalMatters’ questions, saying it has “invested” more than $1 billion in Prop. 22 benefits. Arab would not break down these benefits further.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As for complaints related to the promises, each of the companies said workers should contact support agents, whom they can usually get in touch with in the app; an Instacart spokesperson said workers can make some claims directly in the company’s app.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch3>Seeing little from Prop. 22\u003c/h3>\n\u003cp>Ride-hailing driver Sergio Avedian last year helped raise public awareness of the lack of Prop. 22 enforcement. Specifically, he homed in on one narrow issue: Under the law, gig-work companies were supposed to adjust for inflation each year the reimbursement they pay to drivers for mileage. Avedian said no such adjustment had taken place for two consecutive years. And as a podcaster and contributor to the Rideshare Guy, a popular gig-work blog, he had a high profile. Avedian and a fellow eagle-eyed driver started pestering the state’s treasurer’s office, which had not published the adjusted rates as stipulated under Prop 22. The office eventually did so and, the Los Angeles Times reported, put the state’s gig workers \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/story/2023-06-01/column-uber-david-and-goliath\">on track to get back pay for the mileage expenses\u003c/a> — pay potentially worth hundreds of millions of dollars.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, a year later, Avedian is curious about gig-company math again. He has asked Uber some of the same questions CalMatters did — including how the company accounts for the driver-benefits fee it adds on to each ride or delivery. The company’s response to him was similar — it provided few specifics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides his concern about the issue as a driver, Avedian said “as a consumer who is paying into the Prop. 22 fund on every trip or delivery, I would like to know the accounting of where my money is going.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When the gig companies were campaigning for Prop. 22, they implored voters to “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7QJLgdQaf4\">help create a better path forward for drivers\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But Avedian and other gig workers in California say their paths have not changed much. Many still complain about low wages, little transparency from the companies and lack of worker protections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yasha Timenovich said he has worked as a ride-hailing driver for a decade, first with Uber, now with Lyft.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I work 12, 13, 14 hours a day,” said Timenovich, who drives in the Los Angeles area. “But the time I sit and wait at LAX is not accounted for.” He said he has to work long hours to try to make sure he has enough earnings. “We’re not completely independent contractors. We’re not employees. We’re sort of a hybrid model of theirs. We’re pretty much nobody.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He also said he must obtain health insurance through Medi-Cal, California’s health care coverage for low-income residents — which in turn means he doesn’t qualify for the health care stipend. He said every driver he knows “is on Medi-Cal because they can’t afford health insurance. I don’t know anyone who has (the stipend).”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Many drivers voted for Prop. 22, he said. But “what we were told was a lie.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles cm-manual-eoa-recirc wpnbha show-image image-alignleft ts-3 is-1 is-landscape cm-manual-eoa-recirc has-text-align-left\">\n\u003cdiv data-posts=\"\" data-current-post-id=\"438437\">\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12002988/some-gig-workers-say-they-are-seeing-little-of-prop-22-promises-and-lack-of-enforcement-from-state",
"authors": [
"byline_news_12002988"
],
"categories": [
"news_31795",
"news_1758",
"news_8"
],
"tags": [
"news_34164",
"news_17994",
"news_26585",
"news_25039",
"news_4524",
"news_28695",
"news_25675",
"news_4523"
],
"featImg": "news_12003064",
"label": "source_news_12002988"
},
"news_12001637": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12001637",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12001637",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1724442292000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "uber-users-will-soon-be-able-to-order-an-autonomous-cruise-car-but-not-in-california",
"title": "Uber Users Will Soon Be Able to Order an Autonomous Cruise Car, But Not in California",
"publishDate": 1724442292,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "Uber Users Will Soon Be Able to Order an Autonomous Cruise Car, But Not in California | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>As soon as next year, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/uber\">Uber\u003c/a> users in certain cities could have the option of summoning one of Cruise’s driverless Chevy Bolts, an announcement both companies made this week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The feature won’t be available in San Francisco — where both companies are based — or anywhere else in California after the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11965443/california-dmv-pumps-the-brakes-on-cruise-driverless-taxis-in-san-francisco\">Department of Motor Vehicles pulled Cruise’s testing permits\u003c/a> last October because it found the vehicles were “not safe for the public’s operation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California DMV first granted Cruise the authority to test autonomous vehicles with safety drivers in 2015, and last August, the company was cleared by the California Public Utilities Commission \u003ca href=\"https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/news-and-media/dmv-authorizes-cruise-to-test-driverless-vehicles-in-san-francisco/\">to operate without a driver in San Francisco\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then, in October, a pedestrian who had been hit by a human driver in San Francisco became pinned under the tire of a Cruise vehicle after it dragged the pedestrian as it came to a stop. Cruise, at the time, called it an “extremely rare event” but \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11965752/cruise-suspends-driverless-robotaxi-service-nationwide\">suspended testing its driverless vehicles\u003c/a> across the country shortly after.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company’s permits in California remain suspended indefinitely, according to the DMV. As of May, the agency said it had “provided Cruise with additional questions regarding the reinstatement of their permits.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tiffany Testo, a spokesperson for Cruise, told KQED that the first cities to have the driverless option on Uber would likely be where Cruise is currently conducting supervised testing with safety drivers: Phoenix, Dallas or Houston.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">[aside postID=news_11993706 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/07/Waymo-1020x601.jpg']\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cruise resumed safety testing in those three cities in June.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The partnership brings together two companies that have fallen behind in the race for autonomous robotaxis to Waymo, owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We are excited to partner with Uber to bring the benefits of safe, reliable, autonomous driving to even more people, unlocking a new era of urban mobility,” Marc Whitten, CEO of Cruise, \u003ca href=\"https://www.getcruise.com/news/blog/2024/uber-and-cruise-to-deploy-autonomous-vehicles-on-the-uber-platform/\">said in a statement\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the joint statement, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi cited the company’s position as “the largest mobility and delivery platform.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Earlier this month, Cruise agreed to \u003ca href=\"https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/inv/2022/INCLA-PE22014-10746.pdf\">recall nearly 1,200 robotaxis\u003c/a>, ending an investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board over unnecessarily hard braking. The NTSB says those issues have since been “remedied through software updates that are intended to reduce the risk of unexpected braking maneuvers, including by improvements to perception, prediction, and planning.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cruise’s safety issues also centered on the vehicles’ behavior around pedestrians in roadways, including crosswalks, in some situations. The NTSB previously raised concerns that Cruise’s vehicles didn’t exercise the right amount of caution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "The partnership announced by Uber and Cruise brings together two companies that have fallen behind in the robotaxi race to Waymo.",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1724443023,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 15,
"wordCount": 465
},
"headData": {
"title": "Uber Users Will Soon Be Able to Order an Autonomous Cruise Car, But Not in California | KQED",
"description": "The partnership announced by Uber and Cruise brings together two companies that have fallen behind in the robotaxi race to Waymo.",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "Uber Users Will Soon Be Able to Order an Autonomous Cruise Car, But Not in California",
"datePublished": "2024-08-23T12:44:52-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-08-23T12:57:03-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"sticky": false,
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12001637",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12001637/uber-users-will-soon-be-able-to-order-an-autonomous-cruise-car-but-not-in-california",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>As soon as next year, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/uber\">Uber\u003c/a> users in certain cities could have the option of summoning one of Cruise’s driverless Chevy Bolts, an announcement both companies made this week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The feature won’t be available in San Francisco — where both companies are based — or anywhere else in California after the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11965443/california-dmv-pumps-the-brakes-on-cruise-driverless-taxis-in-san-francisco\">Department of Motor Vehicles pulled Cruise’s testing permits\u003c/a> last October because it found the vehicles were “not safe for the public’s operation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California DMV first granted Cruise the authority to test autonomous vehicles with safety drivers in 2015, and last August, the company was cleared by the California Public Utilities Commission \u003ca href=\"https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/news-and-media/dmv-authorizes-cruise-to-test-driverless-vehicles-in-san-francisco/\">to operate without a driver in San Francisco\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then, in October, a pedestrian who had been hit by a human driver in San Francisco became pinned under the tire of a Cruise vehicle after it dragged the pedestrian as it came to a stop. Cruise, at the time, called it an “extremely rare event” but \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11965752/cruise-suspends-driverless-robotaxi-service-nationwide\">suspended testing its driverless vehicles\u003c/a> across the country shortly after.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The company’s permits in California remain suspended indefinitely, according to the DMV. As of May, the agency said it had “provided Cruise with additional questions regarding the reinstatement of their permits.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tiffany Testo, a spokesperson for Cruise, told KQED that the first cities to have the driverless option on Uber would likely be where Cruise is currently conducting supervised testing with safety drivers: Phoenix, Dallas or Houston.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_11993706",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/07/Waymo-1020x601.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cruise resumed safety testing in those three cities in June.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The partnership brings together two companies that have fallen behind in the race for autonomous robotaxis to Waymo, owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We are excited to partner with Uber to bring the benefits of safe, reliable, autonomous driving to even more people, unlocking a new era of urban mobility,” Marc Whitten, CEO of Cruise, \u003ca href=\"https://www.getcruise.com/news/blog/2024/uber-and-cruise-to-deploy-autonomous-vehicles-on-the-uber-platform/\">said in a statement\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the joint statement, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi cited the company’s position as “the largest mobility and delivery platform.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Earlier this month, Cruise agreed to \u003ca href=\"https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/inv/2022/INCLA-PE22014-10746.pdf\">recall nearly 1,200 robotaxis\u003c/a>, ending an investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board over unnecessarily hard braking. The NTSB says those issues have since been “remedied through software updates that are intended to reduce the risk of unexpected braking maneuvers, including by improvements to perception, prediction, and planning.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cruise’s safety issues also centered on the vehicles’ behavior around pedestrians in roadways, including crosswalks, in some situations. The NTSB previously raised concerns that Cruise’s vehicles didn’t exercise the right amount of caution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12001637/uber-users-will-soon-be-able-to-order-an-autonomous-cruise-car-but-not-in-california",
"authors": [
"11923"
],
"categories": [
"news_8",
"news_1397"
],
"tags": [
"news_34043",
"news_1386",
"news_18538",
"news_33009",
"news_23667",
"news_25675",
"news_33028",
"news_38",
"news_20517",
"news_4523"
],
"featImg": "news_12001650",
"label": "news"
},
"news_11990750": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_11990750",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "11990750",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1718721000000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "uber-and-lyft-are-fighting-minimum-wage-laws-but-in-this-state-the-drivers-won",
"title": "Uber and Lyft Are Fighting Minimum Wage Laws. But in This State, the Drivers Won",
"publishDate": 1718721000,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "Uber and Lyft Are Fighting Minimum Wage Laws. But in This State, the Drivers Won | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"term": 253,
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>In a windowless room, Uber driver Farhan Badel took the podium in front of a committee of Minnesota state legislators in early May. As Badel leaned into the microphone and started speaking, the room quieted. Testifying before lawmakers was something he’d done nearly a dozen times before, but he says this time felt like his last chance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve been fighting for two long years,” Badel stated, referencing ride-hail drivers’ battle to get a minimum wage law passed in the state. He said his message to lawmakers was this: “Uber and Lyft, especially Uber, notorious for their shady lobbying … should not be allowed to dictate what becomes law in this state.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lobbying Badel referenced is part of a playbook Uber and Lyft have used in cities across the country to curb minimum wage laws for drivers. The San Francisco-based companies have barraged lawmakers with emails, sent warning messages to riders and drivers, and threatened to vacate states if they were forced to pay minimum wage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Minnesota, the campaign was particularly aggressive. Interviews with drivers and lawmakers, along with internal emails and documents obtained by NPR, show that Minnesota was the target of an intense operation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That hearing where Badel testified was the latest twist in a whiplash series of events. Over the last two years, ride-hail drivers had organized and grown into a more than 1,300-member group that marched at City Hall, met with lawmakers and brought national attention to their plight.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They had seen wins and losses in dizzying succession: Three separate bills mandating minimum wage for ride-hail drivers passed at the state and city levels, only to get unexpectedly vetoed by Gov. Tim Walz or Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. The drivers say it felt to them like a true David and Goliath situation, pitting them against multibillion-dollar corporations that seemed to hold far more power.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990764\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990764\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Farhan Badel, an Uber/Lyft driver and MULDA organizer, in Apple Valley, Minn., on May 25. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>This spring it reached a boiling point. After gains by the drivers, Uber and Lyft stepped up their lobbying campaign and \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2024/03/15/1238885721/uber-lyft-minneapolis-minimum-wage-law\">threatened to pull out of Minneapolis\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is part of their corporate playbook,” says Laura Padin, who \u003ca href=\"https://www.datocms-assets.com/64990/1714149807-the-bullys-playbook-april-2024.pdf\">studies lobbying in the gig economy (PDF)\u003c/a> at the National Employment Law Project, a labor rights advocacy organization. “The fact that they can issue threats and say ‘We’re going to leave if you treat us like everyone else’ is a big problem.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Spokespeople for Uber and Lyft say the proposed minimum wage would have left the companies unable to sustain their businesses in the state. Uber says it would have made Minnesota “one of the most expensive markets in the country,” and Lyft says it would have made “prices rise so much that we would have seen a 51% decrease in ride requests.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Walz and Frey, both labor-friendly Democrats, had been adamant that they wanted ride-hail drivers to make a livable wage. They also took the companies, and their warnings, seriously.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“From the very beginning, I had two primary goals,” Frey told NPR in an interview. “To get a very significant pay increase for drivers and to keep this very important rideshare service, including Uber and Lyft, in our city.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Similar scenarios have played out in New York and Seattle, which ultimately passed city minimum wage laws. But every state law governing driver pay and protections that has been crafted to date has included provisions backed by Uber and Lyft — through their \u003ca href=\"https://www.nybooks.com/online/2024/05/09/inside-uber-political-machine/?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=2024-05-09_Wells-Uber-1\">lobbying and public campaigns\u003c/a>. For example, in California, the companies \u003ca href=\"https://cal-access.sos.ca.gov/Campaign/Committees/Detail.aspx?id=1422181&session=2019&view=received\">spent a combined $108.5 million\u003c/a> on a successful \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/11/05/931561150/california-voters-give-uber-lyft-a-win-but-some-drivers-arent-so-sure\">ballot measure campaign\u003c/a> to exempt them from a state labor law. Another statewide battle happened in Washington, and one is underway in Massachusetts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But in Minnesota, something wholly unexpected happened last month — the drivers won.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘The worst I’ve seen in eight years’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>It all started in a small coffee shop in Minneapolis. In the summer of 2022, ride-hail driver Eid Ali gathered with about 20 Uber and Lyft drivers to talk about low pay, safety concerns and other issues that come with the job. Ali is a father of five and the sole provider for his family. Before he started driving for Uber and Lyft in 2014, Ali was a taxi driver and had done some organizing. He says this helped him and the other drivers come up with a game plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The first step was to recruit more drivers. Ali and the others went to shopping malls and airport parking lots to speak with drivers. They also went to mosques — the majority of ride-hail drivers in Minneapolis are immigrants, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.dli.mn.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/TNC_driver_earnings_analysis_pay_standard_options_report_030824.pdf\">state data (PDF)\u003c/a>, with many from East Africa, especially Somalia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The drivers coalesced in a group called Minnesota Uber/Lyft Drivers Association, or MULDA, and Ali became the president.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990765\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990765\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eid Ali, president of Minnesota Uber/Lyft Drivers Association (MULDA), at the organization’s offices in Bloomington, Minn., on May 25. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He says drivers reached out to him constantly about not being able to make ends meet. “Family folks raising kids, who depend on this income, are coming to me every day and telling me ‘I don’t know what to do,’” Ali says. “I was thinking that if I don’t do anything, if I don’t fight a few more days or maybe a few more weeks, who’s going to do that?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber and Lyft categorize drivers as independent contractors rather than employees. This means drivers pay their own expenses such as gas, car maintenance and cellphones, and they don’t have employee benefits, including health insurance, sick days and workers’ compensation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Low pay is the top problem, drivers say, as their earnings have steadily shrunk and become harder to predict. In 2022, both Uber and Lyft \u003ca href=\"https://themarkup.org/working-for-an-algorithm/2022/03/01/secretive-algorithm-will-now-determine-uber-driver-pay-in-many-cities\">switched how they paid drivers\u003c/a>, going from a time-and-mileage calculation to an opaque algorithm. Uber and Lyft say the software helps drivers pick and choose trips, but drivers say since that change they’ve seen the companies take a bigger cut, while they’ve gotten less.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sergio Avedian, a longtime ride-hail driver in Los Angeles and senior contributor to the popular blog the \u003ca href=\"https://therideshareguy.com/\">Rideshare Guy\u003c/a>, says thousands of drivers regularly send him their pay stubs. “This is the worst I’ve seen in eight years,” he says, estimating he often earns less than minimum wage after expenses. “But people are driving, they’re desperate.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the Twin Cities metro area, where 95% of all of Minnesota’s ride-hail trips happen, the median take-home wage for drivers is $13.63 per hour, according to a \u003ca href=\"https://www.dli.mn.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/TNC_driver_earnings_analysis_pay_standard_options_report_030824.pdf\">report (PDF)\u003c/a> by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry. That’s below the minimum wage for large businesses in St. Paul ($15) and Minneapolis ($15.57).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber’s spokesperson calls this report “\u003ca href=\"https://uberpubpolicy.medium.com/excessive-rates-and-their-negative-effects-a-review-of-minnesotas-proposed-pay-standard-9747c14d0254\">flawed\u003c/a>.” Lyft didn’t respond to questions about driver pay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber and Lyft have shaped minimum wage laws in their favor in other states. In Washington, for example, after Seattle passed a minimum wage for ride-hail drivers, the two companies \u003ca href=\"https://themarkup.org/news/2022/03/04/bill-in-washington-state-would-be-first-to-bar-uber-and-lyft-drivers-from-being-classified-as-employees\">lobbied legislators\u003c/a> to pass a state law. That law gives drivers a minimum pay floor but also grants a key concession to the companies: ensuring that the drivers remain classified as independent contractors, which exempts the companies from providing customary worker benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990766\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990766\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Symbols for Uber and Lyft adorn Farhan Badel’s vehicle in Apple Valley, Minn. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>By the fall of 2022, hundreds of drivers had joined MULDA, with the campaign crystallizing around the push for a minimum wage. That October, they \u003ca href=\"https://minnesotareformer.com/2022/10/20/uber-and-lyft-drivers-press-lawmakers-to-address-long-standing-labor-complaints/\">held their first press conference\u003c/a> at the Minnesota state Capitol. “Drivers are at a breaking point,” Ali announced, alongside state lawmakers that day. From there, their cause quickly picked up steam.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By March 2023, state legislators had introduced a \u003ca href=\"https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?b=House&f=HF2369&ssn=0&y=2023\">bill\u003c/a> that set out minimum pay and other protections for ride-hail drivers. It swiftly passed the House and Senate and landed on Walz’s desk in late May 2023.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All signs pointed to Walz signing the bill, Badel says. The drivers got ready to celebrate a victory.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Insiders told us to come to the state Capitol the day when they signed all these bills,” Badel says. “They told us to come there dressed well — you know, look presentable, look happy. So, we were getting all these checkmarks that he was going to sign the bill.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A lobbying blitz\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>What Badel and Ali didn’t know was that Uber and Lyft’s lobbyists were hard at work behind the scenes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Days before the governor received the bill, the companies’ lobbyists sent a slew of emails to his staffers and colleagues, according to public records obtained by NPR. Those included “talking points and numbers” that said rider fares would skyrocket if the bill passed. In Minneapolis, they said fares would go up 70%, without citing specific data.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://apps.npr.org/dailygraphics/graphics/lyft-uber-playbook-20240610/aiTimeline.html?initialWidth=840&childId=responsive-embed-lyft-uber-playbook-20240610-aiTimeline&parentTitle=Uber%20and%20Lyft%20use%20lobbying%20to%20fight%20minimum%20wage%20law%20in%20Minnesota%20%3A%20NPR&parentUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.npr.org%2F2024%2F06%2F17%2Fnx-s1-4942958%2Fuber-minimum-wage-minnesota-lyft-lobbying\" width=\"800\" height=\"2200\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brent Kent, a registered lobbyist for Lyft and the company’s director of public policy, sent a letter to Minnesota’s Senate president saying the bill would have a “catastrophic impact” and create “transportation deserts.” Rides in Minneapolis would go from $17 to $54, he said, also not citing specific data for that statistic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As signing day neared, the lobbyists ramped up their efforts. They requested phone calls between Walz and the CEOs of both Uber and Lyft. At one point, Uber lobbyist Joel Carlson emailed the governor’s legislative assistant asking for an alternative email for the office, because he said he had a lot of people wanting to write in with opposition to the bill and didn’t want to “email bomb” her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Carlson also fired off “veto request” letters he collected from 11 community groups — business and hospitality associations as well as organizations that work with people with disabilities, the elderly and domestic violence survivors. At least half of those groups have partnered with Uber or Lyft, but that wasn’t disclosed in their letters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber’s spokesperson says it “engaged many organizations and local stakeholders to ensure they understood the impact of the legislation” and “many decided to express their concerns.” The spokesperson also confirmed that Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi had spoken with the governor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990767\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990767\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Matthew McGlory, a rideshare driver and active member of MULDA, in downtown Minneapolis. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We urged the governor to veto the bill publicly, as well, via issued statements and in emails to riders and drivers,” the spokesperson says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyft didn’t respond to questions about its involvement with the letters from community groups or conversations between its CEO and the governor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Days before the anticipated signing, the companies rolled out a tactic they’d used in California, New York, Texas and other states: They \u003ca href=\"https://www.cbsnews.com/news/uber-minnesota-rideshare-driver-bill-veto-tim-walz/\">threatened to leave the state\u003c/a> if the bill was signed into law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By May 25, 2023, Ali says he and the other drivers were anxious about the outcome. They gathered in front of Walz’s office chanting, “Governor sign the bill!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That afternoon, Walz issued his \u003ca href=\"https://www.house.mn.gov/NewLaws/story/2023/5502\">first and only veto\u003c/a> in four years as governor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His veto letter started off saying the minimum wage bill “could make Minnesota one of the most expensive states in the country for rideshare.” It cited the need to maintain ride-hail services in the state and also referenced the letters from community groups.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokeswoman for Walz says that alongside the veto, the governor \u003ca href=\"https://mn.gov/governor/assets/EO%2023-07%20TNC_tcm1055-579270.pdf\">formed a task force (PDF)\u003c/a> to study the issue. She pointed NPR to a \u003ca href=\"https://mn.gov/governor/newsroom/press-releases/#/detail/appId/1/id/579275\">press release\u003c/a> where he said, “Rideshare drivers deserve fair wages and safe working conditions … This is not the right bill to achieve these goals.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ali says it was a big surprise and a major blow for MULDA. “That was my worst nightmare, because I didn’t know what to say to those drivers.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘You’re our last resort’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As the state bill made its way through the Legislature, the MULDA drivers were also simultaneously working with city council members in Minneapolis. After the governor’s veto, the drivers reorganized and went all in at the local level — becoming ever-present at City Hall.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They came to City Hall many, many times, saying: ‘Government officials, you’re our last resort,’” says Robin Wonsley, the Minneapolis council member for Ward 2.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The makeup of the workforce for the rideshare companies is predominantly Black, predominantly immigrant and also predominantly low income,” she added. “And many of these drivers, or a disproportionate number of these drivers, are \u003ca href=\"https://www.dli.mn.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/TNC_driver_earnings_analysis_pay_standard_options_report_030824.pdf\">actually on public assistance (PDF)\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990768\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990768\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Robin Wonsley, Minneapolis council member for Ward 2, outside City Hall in Bloomington, Minn., on May 26. Wonsley and colleagues worked on a city ordinance to give ride-hail drivers a minimum wage in Minneapolis. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>She joined fellow council members Jamal Osman, who’d introduced her to MULDA, and Jason Chavez to work on a city ordinance. They reached out to economists and experts to come up with a calculation that would be equivalent to the city’s minimum wage. Uber and Lyft only pay drivers when they’re giving rides and not when they’re waiting for a passenger, so a straight hourly wage wouldn’t work. The \u003ca href=\"https://lims.minneapolismn.gov/Download/MetaData/31233/2023-052_Id_31233.pdf\">ordinance (PDF)\u003c/a> they introduced mandated that drivers be paid $1.40 per mile and 51¢ per minute.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It \u003ca href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2023/08/17/minneapolis-approves-measure-to-boost-pay-for-uber-lyft-drivers\">passed the council\u003c/a> in August 2023 by a 7–5 vote. But behind the scenes, the companies’ lobbyists were leaning hard on Frey.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As with the governor, Uber and Lyft’s lobbyists targeted the mayor, according to internal emails obtained by NPR through public records requests. Lyft’s Kent reached out to staffers saying the company had “grave concerns.” He sent the mayor and council members an opposition letter from a Lyft executive that had one sentence bolded and underlined: “Should this proposal become law, Lyft will be forced to cease operations.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, Uber’s Carlson called the ordinance “problematic.” On Aug. 21, Carlson emailed a senior aide at City Hall, saying he had spoken with the mayor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Uber understands the importance and optics to provide a thoughtful response to the council’s vote and have offered to him the opportunity to announce the following if he chooses,” the email reads. Carlson said the mayor could announce that Uber pledges to give drivers a minimum wage and a $5 minimum on all trips. He sent suggested language for the mayor’s announcement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990769\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990769\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">In Minneapolis, the median take-home wage for ride-hail drivers is nearly $2 less than the minimum wage. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The next day, Frey \u003ca href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2023/08/22/minneapolis-mayor-jacob-frey-vetoes-rideshare-bill\">vetoed the ordinance\u003c/a>. In his \u003ca href=\"https://lims.minneapolismn.gov/Download/FileV2/32370/2023_052-Veto-Letter.pdf\">veto letter (PDF)\u003c/a>, he said he’d work on another ordinance that included all stakeholders. The mayor also wrote that he was “pleased to share” that he secured a commitment from Uber to provide drivers a minimum wage and a $5 minimum per ride.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber’s spokesperson says the minimum wage guarantee “was not part of any negotiations.” A spokesperson for Frey says the commitment from Uber “was not in exchange for a veto.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wonsley says she was outraged.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Why are we having city leaders now supporting a multibillion-dollar corporation and having an exemption from a city policy that hundreds of small businesses have been in compliance with?” she says, referring to the city’s minimum wage law. “And then he announced a nonbinding agreement with Uber, saying, ‘Look, we don’t need to change nothing, the company has made a commitment, a symbolic commitment to pay drivers more.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We were like ‘Wait, what?’ ” Wonsley adds. “That makes absolutely no sense.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frey’s spokesperson says the commitment from Uber “was never intended to be a permanent solution.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Public pressure campaign\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The mayor’s veto, coming after the governor’s veto, could have been the end for MULDA drivers’ quest to get a minimum wage law. In other states that went through similar scenarios, such setbacks have taken the wind out of organizing efforts. But Ali and Badel say they came too close to give up. And council member Wonsley says she wasn’t ready to back down either.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She and her colleagues introduced two more ordinances in October 2023. One focused on minimum wage, the other on worker protections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Less than six months later, the council passed the new minimum wage \u003ca href=\"https://lims.minneapolismn.gov/Download/FileV2/34129/Transportation-Rideshare-Compensation-Ordinance.pdf\">ordinance (PDF)\u003c/a> by a 9–4 vote. The next day, once again, Frey vetoed the ordinance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I asked the City Council to wait one day,” says Frey, until after the release of the statewide report on driver earnings. “Both times I vetoed it because it wasn’t supported by the data. And so, we should be listening to the data.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This time, however, the council had enough votes to \u003ca href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2024/03/14/minneapolis-city-council-overrides-freys-veto-on-ordinance-boosting-rideshare-driver-pay\">override his veto\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With this go-round, Uber and Lyft kicked their pressure campaign up a notch. Instead of mostly working with lawmakers behind closed doors, the companies brought their lobbying to the public.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s been a full-court press campaign,” Wonsley says. “Every single day there are several articles, interviews in the press, basically demonizing our actions and creating a lot of confusion for the public around what our policy actually accomplished.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The day after the veto override, Uber and Lyft \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2024/03/15/1238885721/uber-lyft-minneapolis-minimum-wage-law\">announced they were leaving Minneapolis\u003c/a> as soon as the ordinance went into effect. It was around this time that Matthew McGlory, a MULDA member and longtime Uber and Lyft driver, started getting in-app messages and emails from the companies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990770\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990770\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Matthew McGlory, a rideshare driver and active member of MULDA, in downtown Minneapolis on May 26. McGlory says drivers in other states have been watching Minnesota, waiting to see what happened. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We know that this decision will have a huge negative effect,” a message from Uber read. “It will put thousands of drivers — like you — out of work.” Uber provided a link to email lawmakers urging them to pass statewide legislation that could preempt the city ordinance and be more favorable to the companies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyft, meanwhile, sent an email to its riders saying the ordinance would make rides “unaffordable” for the majority of residents. Lyft’s spokesperson didn’t respond to questions about the in-app messages. Uber’s spokesperson says, “The message speaks for itself.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There was also a flurry of activity in the local news. Uber put an online ad in the \u003cem>Star Tribune\u003c/em> saying Minneapolis was “forcing” it to leave and offered a button to click to “save our rides.” Dan Meyers, a director at disability advocacy group Rise, \u003ca href=\"https://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-rideshare-driver-pay-proposal-looks-at-only-one-side-of-equation/600348209/\">wrote an op-ed\u003c/a> saying the ordinance would be “devastating to the disability community.” Lyft and Rise are \u003ca href=\"https://rise.org/12858-2/\">longtime partners\u003c/a>, which wasn’t disclosed in the op-ed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokesperson for Rise says, “Our work with Lyft is well-known among our peers and partners.” Lyft didn’t respond to questions about any possible involvement with the op-ed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even with the ordinance set to go into effect in Minneapolis, MULDA drivers say they were still nervous. A statewide bill could preempt the city ordinance and undercut their pay. It was hard to tell which way it would go.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘No one else has been able to do this in the country’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The same day Farhan Badel took the podium in early May pleading with state lawmakers to not let the ride-hail companies dictate the law, Uber’s Carlson also spoke. They were discussing a compromise state bill that would preempt the Minneapolis ordinance — it offered drivers a rate of $1.27 per mile and 49¢ per minute. Carlson told the lawmakers this wouldn’t work for Uber.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label=\"Related Stories\" postID=\"news_11986533,news_11987167,forum_2010101905828\"]“Uber has calculated that if you reasonably calculate the expenses you come up with a rate of 41¢ per mile and 68¢ per minute,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The legislators left that hearing without giving any indication\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>which way it would go. But a couple of weeks later, they made a move that stunned observers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the night of May 19, \u003ca href=\"https://minnesotareformer.com/2024/05/21/heres-whats-in-the-bill-regulating-uber-and-lyft-driver-pay-and-labor-standards/\">the state passed a new bill\u003c/a> giving drivers the minimum wage rate of $1.28 per mile and 31¢ per minute. Even though it was slightly lower and preempted the Minneapolis ordinance, Wonsley and the council backed it. Frey says he was opposed to the preemption, but that he ultimately supported the bill too since he says it was “nearly identical” to what he proposed months earlier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was a major win for the MULDA drivers. After the bill’s passage, in a moment of jubilation in the Capitol’s hallways, they hoisted one of the state legislators in the air and chanted “MULDA” over and over. The legislator, Sen. Omar Fateh, who was instrumental in getting the bill passed, said, “It was Uber and Lyft versus MULDA and MULDA won.” The crowd erupted in cheers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990771\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990771\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rideshare vehicles share the road with other drivers in downtown Minneapolis. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Spokespeople for Uber and Lyft say the companies accepted the compromise, and that neither will shutter operations in the state. Unlike the minimum pay laws for ride-hail drivers in California and Washington state, Minnesota’s bill doesn’t mandate that drivers remain independent contractors — something Uber and Lyft had sought, but didn’t get.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On May 28, Walz signed the bill into law with Ali by his side wearing a white MULDA T-shirt. During a press conference announcing its passage, the governor congratulated state lawmakers. “No one else has been able to do this in the country,” Walz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The driver McGlory says MULDA has heard from drivers in other states who have been watching Minnesota over the past year and a half, waiting to see what happened.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m doing this not just for drivers in Minneapolis. I’m doing this for the drivers in Nashville, Tenn. I’m doing this for drivers in Jackson, Miss.,” McGlory says, pausing for a moment before continuing. “Because when we educate ourselves, when we organize ourselves and we mobilize ourselves, we can win.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Like my favorite physics teacher said, ‘We have to become an unstoppable force that meets an immovable object.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "Uber and Lyft have lobbied in cities across the country to curb minimum wage laws for drivers, but drivers of the ride-hail companies in Minnesota scored a hard-fought victory after years of struggle.",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1718669052,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": true,
"iframeSrcs": [
"https://apps.npr.org/dailygraphics/graphics/lyft-uber-playbook-20240610/aiTimeline.html"
],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 81,
"wordCount": 3965
},
"headData": {
"title": "Uber and Lyft Are Fighting Minimum Wage Laws. But in This State, the Drivers Won | KQED",
"description": "Uber and Lyft have lobbied in cities across the country to curb minimum wage laws for drivers, but drivers of the ride-hail companies in Minnesota scored a hard-fought victory after years of struggle.",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "Uber and Lyft Are Fighting Minimum Wage Laws. But in This State, the Drivers Won",
"datePublished": "2024-06-18T07:30:00-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-06-17T17:04:12-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"sticky": false,
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/1147860766/dara-kerr\">Dara Kerr\u003c/a>",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/11990750/uber-and-lyft-are-fighting-minimum-wage-laws-but-in-this-state-the-drivers-won",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>In a windowless room, Uber driver Farhan Badel took the podium in front of a committee of Minnesota state legislators in early May. As Badel leaned into the microphone and started speaking, the room quieted. Testifying before lawmakers was something he’d done nearly a dozen times before, but he says this time felt like his last chance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’ve been fighting for two long years,” Badel stated, referencing ride-hail drivers’ battle to get a minimum wage law passed in the state. He said his message to lawmakers was this: “Uber and Lyft, especially Uber, notorious for their shady lobbying … should not be allowed to dictate what becomes law in this state.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The lobbying Badel referenced is part of a playbook Uber and Lyft have used in cities across the country to curb minimum wage laws for drivers. The San Francisco-based companies have barraged lawmakers with emails, sent warning messages to riders and drivers, and threatened to vacate states if they were forced to pay minimum wage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In Minnesota, the campaign was particularly aggressive. Interviews with drivers and lawmakers, along with internal emails and documents obtained by NPR, show that Minnesota was the target of an intense operation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That hearing where Badel testified was the latest twist in a whiplash series of events. Over the last two years, ride-hail drivers had organized and grown into a more than 1,300-member group that marched at City Hall, met with lawmakers and brought national attention to their plight.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They had seen wins and losses in dizzying succession: Three separate bills mandating minimum wage for ride-hail drivers passed at the state and city levels, only to get unexpectedly vetoed by Gov. Tim Walz or Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. The drivers say it felt to them like a true David and Goliath situation, pitting them against multibillion-dollar corporations that seemed to hold far more power.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990764\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990764\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn-1-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Farhan Badel, an Uber/Lyft driver and MULDA organizer, in Apple Valley, Minn., on May 25. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>This spring it reached a boiling point. After gains by the drivers, Uber and Lyft stepped up their lobbying campaign and \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2024/03/15/1238885721/uber-lyft-minneapolis-minimum-wage-law\">threatened to pull out of Minneapolis\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This is part of their corporate playbook,” says Laura Padin, who \u003ca href=\"https://www.datocms-assets.com/64990/1714149807-the-bullys-playbook-april-2024.pdf\">studies lobbying in the gig economy (PDF)\u003c/a> at the National Employment Law Project, a labor rights advocacy organization. “The fact that they can issue threats and say ‘We’re going to leave if you treat us like everyone else’ is a big problem.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Spokespeople for Uber and Lyft say the proposed minimum wage would have left the companies unable to sustain their businesses in the state. Uber says it would have made Minnesota “one of the most expensive markets in the country,” and Lyft says it would have made “prices rise so much that we would have seen a 51% decrease in ride requests.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Walz and Frey, both labor-friendly Democrats, had been adamant that they wanted ride-hail drivers to make a livable wage. They also took the companies, and their warnings, seriously.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“From the very beginning, I had two primary goals,” Frey told NPR in an interview. “To get a very significant pay increase for drivers and to keep this very important rideshare service, including Uber and Lyft, in our city.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Similar scenarios have played out in New York and Seattle, which ultimately passed city minimum wage laws. But every state law governing driver pay and protections that has been crafted to date has included provisions backed by Uber and Lyft — through their \u003ca href=\"https://www.nybooks.com/online/2024/05/09/inside-uber-political-machine/?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=2024-05-09_Wells-Uber-1\">lobbying and public campaigns\u003c/a>. For example, in California, the companies \u003ca href=\"https://cal-access.sos.ca.gov/Campaign/Committees/Detail.aspx?id=1422181&session=2019&view=received\">spent a combined $108.5 million\u003c/a> on a successful \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2020/11/05/931561150/california-voters-give-uber-lyft-a-win-but-some-drivers-arent-so-sure\">ballot measure campaign\u003c/a> to exempt them from a state labor law. Another statewide battle happened in Washington, and one is underway in Massachusetts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But in Minnesota, something wholly unexpected happened last month — the drivers won.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘The worst I’ve seen in eight years’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>It all started in a small coffee shop in Minneapolis. In the summer of 2022, ride-hail driver Eid Ali gathered with about 20 Uber and Lyft drivers to talk about low pay, safety concerns and other issues that come with the job. Ali is a father of five and the sole provider for his family. Before he started driving for Uber and Lyft in 2014, Ali was a taxi driver and had done some organizing. He says this helped him and the other drivers come up with a game plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The first step was to recruit more drivers. Ali and the others went to shopping malls and airport parking lots to speak with drivers. They also went to mosques — the majority of ride-hail drivers in Minneapolis are immigrants, according to \u003ca href=\"https://www.dli.mn.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/TNC_driver_earnings_analysis_pay_standard_options_report_030824.pdf\">state data (PDF)\u003c/a>, with many from East Africa, especially Somalia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The drivers coalesced in a group called Minnesota Uber/Lyft Drivers Association, or MULDA, and Ali became the president.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990765\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990765\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn2-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eid Ali, president of Minnesota Uber/Lyft Drivers Association (MULDA), at the organization’s offices in Bloomington, Minn., on May 25. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He says drivers reached out to him constantly about not being able to make ends meet. “Family folks raising kids, who depend on this income, are coming to me every day and telling me ‘I don’t know what to do,’” Ali says. “I was thinking that if I don’t do anything, if I don’t fight a few more days or maybe a few more weeks, who’s going to do that?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber and Lyft categorize drivers as independent contractors rather than employees. This means drivers pay their own expenses such as gas, car maintenance and cellphones, and they don’t have employee benefits, including health insurance, sick days and workers’ compensation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Low pay is the top problem, drivers say, as their earnings have steadily shrunk and become harder to predict. In 2022, both Uber and Lyft \u003ca href=\"https://themarkup.org/working-for-an-algorithm/2022/03/01/secretive-algorithm-will-now-determine-uber-driver-pay-in-many-cities\">switched how they paid drivers\u003c/a>, going from a time-and-mileage calculation to an opaque algorithm. Uber and Lyft say the software helps drivers pick and choose trips, but drivers say since that change they’ve seen the companies take a bigger cut, while they’ve gotten less.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sergio Avedian, a longtime ride-hail driver in Los Angeles and senior contributor to the popular blog the \u003ca href=\"https://therideshareguy.com/\">Rideshare Guy\u003c/a>, says thousands of drivers regularly send him their pay stubs. “This is the worst I’ve seen in eight years,” he says, estimating he often earns less than minimum wage after expenses. “But people are driving, they’re desperate.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the Twin Cities metro area, where 95% of all of Minnesota’s ride-hail trips happen, the median take-home wage for drivers is $13.63 per hour, according to a \u003ca href=\"https://www.dli.mn.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/TNC_driver_earnings_analysis_pay_standard_options_report_030824.pdf\">report (PDF)\u003c/a> by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry. That’s below the minimum wage for large businesses in St. Paul ($15) and Minneapolis ($15.57).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber’s spokesperson calls this report “\u003ca href=\"https://uberpubpolicy.medium.com/excessive-rates-and-their-negative-effects-a-review-of-minnesotas-proposed-pay-standard-9747c14d0254\">flawed\u003c/a>.” Lyft didn’t respond to questions about driver pay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber and Lyft have shaped minimum wage laws in their favor in other states. In Washington, for example, after Seattle passed a minimum wage for ride-hail drivers, the two companies \u003ca href=\"https://themarkup.org/news/2022/03/04/bill-in-washington-state-would-be-first-to-bar-uber-and-lyft-drivers-from-being-classified-as-employees\">lobbied legislators\u003c/a> to pass a state law. That law gives drivers a minimum pay floor but also grants a key concession to the companies: ensuring that the drivers remain classified as independent contractors, which exempts the companies from providing customary worker benefits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990766\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990766\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn3-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Symbols for Uber and Lyft adorn Farhan Badel’s vehicle in Apple Valley, Minn. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>By the fall of 2022, hundreds of drivers had joined MULDA, with the campaign crystallizing around the push for a minimum wage. That October, they \u003ca href=\"https://minnesotareformer.com/2022/10/20/uber-and-lyft-drivers-press-lawmakers-to-address-long-standing-labor-complaints/\">held their first press conference\u003c/a> at the Minnesota state Capitol. “Drivers are at a breaking point,” Ali announced, alongside state lawmakers that day. From there, their cause quickly picked up steam.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By March 2023, state legislators had introduced a \u003ca href=\"https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?b=House&f=HF2369&ssn=0&y=2023\">bill\u003c/a> that set out minimum pay and other protections for ride-hail drivers. It swiftly passed the House and Senate and landed on Walz’s desk in late May 2023.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All signs pointed to Walz signing the bill, Badel says. The drivers got ready to celebrate a victory.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Insiders told us to come to the state Capitol the day when they signed all these bills,” Badel says. “They told us to come there dressed well — you know, look presentable, look happy. So, we were getting all these checkmarks that he was going to sign the bill.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A lobbying blitz\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>What Badel and Ali didn’t know was that Uber and Lyft’s lobbyists were hard at work behind the scenes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Days before the governor received the bill, the companies’ lobbyists sent a slew of emails to his staffers and colleagues, according to public records obtained by NPR. Those included “talking points and numbers” that said rider fares would skyrocket if the bill passed. In Minneapolis, they said fares would go up 70%, without citing specific data.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https://apps.npr.org/dailygraphics/graphics/lyft-uber-playbook-20240610/aiTimeline.html?initialWidth=840&childId=responsive-embed-lyft-uber-playbook-20240610-aiTimeline&parentTitle=Uber%20and%20Lyft%20use%20lobbying%20to%20fight%20minimum%20wage%20law%20in%20Minnesota%20%3A%20NPR&parentUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.npr.org%2F2024%2F06%2F17%2Fnx-s1-4942958%2Fuber-minimum-wage-minnesota-lyft-lobbying\" width=\"800\" height=\"2200\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brent Kent, a registered lobbyist for Lyft and the company’s director of public policy, sent a letter to Minnesota’s Senate president saying the bill would have a “catastrophic impact” and create “transportation deserts.” Rides in Minneapolis would go from $17 to $54, he said, also not citing specific data for that statistic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As signing day neared, the lobbyists ramped up their efforts. They requested phone calls between Walz and the CEOs of both Uber and Lyft. At one point, Uber lobbyist Joel Carlson emailed the governor’s legislative assistant asking for an alternative email for the office, because he said he had a lot of people wanting to write in with opposition to the bill and didn’t want to “email bomb” her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Carlson also fired off “veto request” letters he collected from 11 community groups — business and hospitality associations as well as organizations that work with people with disabilities, the elderly and domestic violence survivors. At least half of those groups have partnered with Uber or Lyft, but that wasn’t disclosed in their letters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber’s spokesperson says it “engaged many organizations and local stakeholders to ensure they understood the impact of the legislation” and “many decided to express their concerns.” The spokesperson also confirmed that Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi had spoken with the governor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990767\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990767\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn4-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Matthew McGlory, a rideshare driver and active member of MULDA, in downtown Minneapolis. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We urged the governor to veto the bill publicly, as well, via issued statements and in emails to riders and drivers,” the spokesperson says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyft didn’t respond to questions about its involvement with the letters from community groups or conversations between its CEO and the governor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Days before the anticipated signing, the companies rolled out a tactic they’d used in California, New York, Texas and other states: They \u003ca href=\"https://www.cbsnews.com/news/uber-minnesota-rideshare-driver-bill-veto-tim-walz/\">threatened to leave the state\u003c/a> if the bill was signed into law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By May 25, 2023, Ali says he and the other drivers were anxious about the outcome. They gathered in front of Walz’s office chanting, “Governor sign the bill!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That afternoon, Walz issued his \u003ca href=\"https://www.house.mn.gov/NewLaws/story/2023/5502\">first and only veto\u003c/a> in four years as governor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His veto letter started off saying the minimum wage bill “could make Minnesota one of the most expensive states in the country for rideshare.” It cited the need to maintain ride-hail services in the state and also referenced the letters from community groups.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokeswoman for Walz says that alongside the veto, the governor \u003ca href=\"https://mn.gov/governor/assets/EO%2023-07%20TNC_tcm1055-579270.pdf\">formed a task force (PDF)\u003c/a> to study the issue. She pointed NPR to a \u003ca href=\"https://mn.gov/governor/newsroom/press-releases/#/detail/appId/1/id/579275\">press release\u003c/a> where he said, “Rideshare drivers deserve fair wages and safe working conditions … This is not the right bill to achieve these goals.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ali says it was a big surprise and a major blow for MULDA. “That was my worst nightmare, because I didn’t know what to say to those drivers.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘You’re our last resort’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As the state bill made its way through the Legislature, the MULDA drivers were also simultaneously working with city council members in Minneapolis. After the governor’s veto, the drivers reorganized and went all in at the local level — becoming ever-present at City Hall.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They came to City Hall many, many times, saying: ‘Government officials, you’re our last resort,’” says Robin Wonsley, the Minneapolis council member for Ward 2.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The makeup of the workforce for the rideshare companies is predominantly Black, predominantly immigrant and also predominantly low income,” she added. “And many of these drivers, or a disproportionate number of these drivers, are \u003ca href=\"https://www.dli.mn.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/TNC_driver_earnings_analysis_pay_standard_options_report_030824.pdf\">actually on public assistance (PDF)\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990768\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990768\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn5-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Robin Wonsley, Minneapolis council member for Ward 2, outside City Hall in Bloomington, Minn., on May 26. Wonsley and colleagues worked on a city ordinance to give ride-hail drivers a minimum wage in Minneapolis. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>She joined fellow council members Jamal Osman, who’d introduced her to MULDA, and Jason Chavez to work on a city ordinance. They reached out to economists and experts to come up with a calculation that would be equivalent to the city’s minimum wage. Uber and Lyft only pay drivers when they’re giving rides and not when they’re waiting for a passenger, so a straight hourly wage wouldn’t work. The \u003ca href=\"https://lims.minneapolismn.gov/Download/MetaData/31233/2023-052_Id_31233.pdf\">ordinance (PDF)\u003c/a> they introduced mandated that drivers be paid $1.40 per mile and 51¢ per minute.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It \u003ca href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2023/08/17/minneapolis-approves-measure-to-boost-pay-for-uber-lyft-drivers\">passed the council\u003c/a> in August 2023 by a 7–5 vote. But behind the scenes, the companies’ lobbyists were leaning hard on Frey.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As with the governor, Uber and Lyft’s lobbyists targeted the mayor, according to internal emails obtained by NPR through public records requests. Lyft’s Kent reached out to staffers saying the company had “grave concerns.” He sent the mayor and council members an opposition letter from a Lyft executive that had one sentence bolded and underlined: “Should this proposal become law, Lyft will be forced to cease operations.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, Uber’s Carlson called the ordinance “problematic.” On Aug. 21, Carlson emailed a senior aide at City Hall, saying he had spoken with the mayor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Uber understands the importance and optics to provide a thoughtful response to the council’s vote and have offered to him the opportunity to announce the following if he chooses,” the email reads. Carlson said the mayor could announce that Uber pledges to give drivers a minimum wage and a $5 minimum on all trips. He sent suggested language for the mayor’s announcement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990769\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990769\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn6-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">In Minneapolis, the median take-home wage for ride-hail drivers is nearly $2 less than the minimum wage. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The next day, Frey \u003ca href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2023/08/22/minneapolis-mayor-jacob-frey-vetoes-rideshare-bill\">vetoed the ordinance\u003c/a>. In his \u003ca href=\"https://lims.minneapolismn.gov/Download/FileV2/32370/2023_052-Veto-Letter.pdf\">veto letter (PDF)\u003c/a>, he said he’d work on another ordinance that included all stakeholders. The mayor also wrote that he was “pleased to share” that he secured a commitment from Uber to provide drivers a minimum wage and a $5 minimum per ride.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Uber’s spokesperson says the minimum wage guarantee “was not part of any negotiations.” A spokesperson for Frey says the commitment from Uber “was not in exchange for a veto.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wonsley says she was outraged.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Why are we having city leaders now supporting a multibillion-dollar corporation and having an exemption from a city policy that hundreds of small businesses have been in compliance with?” she says, referring to the city’s minimum wage law. “And then he announced a nonbinding agreement with Uber, saying, ‘Look, we don’t need to change nothing, the company has made a commitment, a symbolic commitment to pay drivers more.’ ”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We were like ‘Wait, what?’ ” Wonsley adds. “That makes absolutely no sense.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Frey’s spokesperson says the commitment from Uber “was never intended to be a permanent solution.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Public pressure campaign\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The mayor’s veto, coming after the governor’s veto, could have been the end for MULDA drivers’ quest to get a minimum wage law. In other states that went through similar scenarios, such setbacks have taken the wind out of organizing efforts. But Ali and Badel say they came too close to give up. And council member Wonsley says she wasn’t ready to back down either.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She and her colleagues introduced two more ordinances in October 2023. One focused on minimum wage, the other on worker protections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Less than six months later, the council passed the new minimum wage \u003ca href=\"https://lims.minneapolismn.gov/Download/FileV2/34129/Transportation-Rideshare-Compensation-Ordinance.pdf\">ordinance (PDF)\u003c/a> by a 9–4 vote. The next day, once again, Frey vetoed the ordinance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I asked the City Council to wait one day,” says Frey, until after the release of the statewide report on driver earnings. “Both times I vetoed it because it wasn’t supported by the data. And so, we should be listening to the data.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This time, however, the council had enough votes to \u003ca href=\"https://www.mprnews.org/story/2024/03/14/minneapolis-city-council-overrides-freys-veto-on-ordinance-boosting-rideshare-driver-pay\">override his veto\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With this go-round, Uber and Lyft kicked their pressure campaign up a notch. Instead of mostly working with lawmakers behind closed doors, the companies brought their lobbying to the public.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s been a full-court press campaign,” Wonsley says. “Every single day there are several articles, interviews in the press, basically demonizing our actions and creating a lot of confusion for the public around what our policy actually accomplished.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The day after the veto override, Uber and Lyft \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2024/03/15/1238885721/uber-lyft-minneapolis-minimum-wage-law\">announced they were leaving Minneapolis\u003c/a> as soon as the ordinance went into effect. It was around this time that Matthew McGlory, a MULDA member and longtime Uber and Lyft driver, started getting in-app messages and emails from the companies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990770\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990770\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn7-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Matthew McGlory, a rideshare driver and active member of MULDA, in downtown Minneapolis on May 26. McGlory says drivers in other states have been watching Minnesota, waiting to see what happened. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“We know that this decision will have a huge negative effect,” a message from Uber read. “It will put thousands of drivers — like you — out of work.” Uber provided a link to email lawmakers urging them to pass statewide legislation that could preempt the city ordinance and be more favorable to the companies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyft, meanwhile, sent an email to its riders saying the ordinance would make rides “unaffordable” for the majority of residents. Lyft’s spokesperson didn’t respond to questions about the in-app messages. Uber’s spokesperson says, “The message speaks for itself.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There was also a flurry of activity in the local news. Uber put an online ad in the \u003cem>Star Tribune\u003c/em> saying Minneapolis was “forcing” it to leave and offered a button to click to “save our rides.” Dan Meyers, a director at disability advocacy group Rise, \u003ca href=\"https://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-rideshare-driver-pay-proposal-looks-at-only-one-side-of-equation/600348209/\">wrote an op-ed\u003c/a> saying the ordinance would be “devastating to the disability community.” Lyft and Rise are \u003ca href=\"https://rise.org/12858-2/\">longtime partners\u003c/a>, which wasn’t disclosed in the op-ed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A spokesperson for Rise says, “Our work with Lyft is well-known among our peers and partners.” Lyft didn’t respond to questions about any possible involvement with the op-ed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even with the ordinance set to go into effect in Minneapolis, MULDA drivers say they were still nervous. A statewide bill could preempt the city ordinance and undercut their pay. It was hard to tell which way it would go.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘No one else has been able to do this in the country’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The same day Farhan Badel took the podium in early May pleading with state lawmakers to not let the ride-hail companies dictate the law, Uber’s Carlson also spoke. They were discussing a compromise state bill that would preempt the Minneapolis ordinance — it offered drivers a rate of $1.27 per mile and 49¢ per minute. Carlson told the lawmakers this wouldn’t work for Uber.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "Related Stories ",
"postid": "news_11986533,news_11987167,forum_2010101905828"
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“Uber has calculated that if you reasonably calculate the expenses you come up with a rate of 41¢ per mile and 68¢ per minute,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The legislators left that hearing without giving any indication\u003cstrong> \u003c/strong>which way it would go. But a couple of weeks later, they made a move that stunned observers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On the night of May 19, \u003ca href=\"https://minnesotareformer.com/2024/05/21/heres-whats-in-the-bill-regulating-uber-and-lyft-driver-pay-and-labor-standards/\">the state passed a new bill\u003c/a> giving drivers the minimum wage rate of $1.28 per mile and 31¢ per minute. Even though it was slightly lower and preempted the Minneapolis ordinance, Wonsley and the council backed it. Frey says he was opposed to the preemption, but that he ultimately supported the bill too since he says it was “nearly identical” to what he proposed months earlier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was a major win for the MULDA drivers. After the bill’s passage, in a moment of jubilation in the Capitol’s hallways, they hoisted one of the state legislators in the air and chanted “MULDA” over and over. The legislator, Sen. Omar Fateh, who was instrumental in getting the bill passed, said, “It was Uber and Lyft versus MULDA and MULDA won.” The crowd erupted in cheers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11990771\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1700px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11990771\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1700\" height=\"1134\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy.jpg 1700w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/06/npr.brightspotcdn8-copy-1536x1025.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rideshare vehicles share the road with other drivers in downtown Minneapolis. \u003ccite>(Jenn Ackerman for NPR)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Spokespeople for Uber and Lyft say the companies accepted the compromise, and that neither will shutter operations in the state. Unlike the minimum pay laws for ride-hail drivers in California and Washington state, Minnesota’s bill doesn’t mandate that drivers remain independent contractors — something Uber and Lyft had sought, but didn’t get.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On May 28, Walz signed the bill into law with Ali by his side wearing a white MULDA T-shirt. During a press conference announcing its passage, the governor congratulated state lawmakers. “No one else has been able to do this in the country,” Walz said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The driver McGlory says MULDA has heard from drivers in other states who have been watching Minnesota over the past year and a half, waiting to see what happened.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m doing this not just for drivers in Minneapolis. I’m doing this for the drivers in Nashville, Tenn. I’m doing this for drivers in Jackson, Miss.,” McGlory says, pausing for a moment before continuing. “Because when we educate ourselves, when we organize ourselves and we mobilize ourselves, we can win.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Like my favorite physics teacher said, ‘We have to become an unstoppable force that meets an immovable object.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/11990750/uber-and-lyft-are-fighting-minimum-wage-laws-but-in-this-state-the-drivers-won",
"authors": [
"byline_news_11990750"
],
"categories": [
"news_1758",
"news_8",
"news_1397"
],
"tags": [
"news_17994",
"news_4524",
"news_2141",
"news_25675",
"news_4523"
],
"affiliates": [
"news_253"
],
"featImg": "news_11990763",
"label": "news_253"
},
"news_11961382": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_11961382",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "11961382",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1694811643000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {
"site": "news",
"term": 253
},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1694811643,
"format": "standard",
"title": "In Effort to Make Rides Safer, Lyft Launches Women+ Connect",
"headTitle": "In Effort to Make Rides Safer, Lyft Launches Women+ Connect | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Some women and nonbinary drivers for Lyft can now match up with women and nonbinary riders, using a new feature launched by the rideshare service earlier this week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The in-app option, called Women+ Connect, was added to Lyft’s services in a move to improve safety after \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11773435/lyft-announces-new-safety-features-following-sexual-assault-lawsuit\">a raft of lawsuits\u003c/a> in recent years accused the company of failing to protect passengers and drivers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s also designed to boost the number of women and nonbinary drivers working for the San Francisco-based company. Currently they make up just 23% of the drivers on the platform, according to Lyft.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This highly requested feature offers more control over the driving experience for women and nonbinary people, allowing them to feel that much more confident. And with fewer barriers to driving, more women can access flexible earning opportunities,” Lyft said in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.lyft.com/blog/posts/women-plus-connect\">statement\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drivers can choose to turn on a preference in the Lyft app to prioritize matches with other nearby women and nonbinary riders. It’s the same opt-in type of deal for riders. But it’s not a guarantee. If no riders or drivers matching the descriptions are nearby, they will still be paired up with men.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The added service is only being rolled out in San Francisco, San José, San Diego, Phoenix and Chicago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyft and its primary rival, Uber, have come under increasing scrutiny over safety issues, especially sexual assaults, since launching more than a decade ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last September, Lyft was hit with \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/09/01/1120391757/lyft-lawsuits-assault-allegations'\">17 lawsuits \u003c/a>brought by users, claiming the company failed to protect passengers and drivers from physical and sexual assault. In 2019, it faced another similar \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11772148/14-women-allegedly-assaulted-by-lyft-drivers-sue-the-company\">wave of lawsuits\u003c/a> from women riders who accused the company of knowing about alleged attacks by predatory drivers for years but doing nothing to address the issue.[aside label=\"Related Stories\" postID=news_11789891,news_11789655,news_11688338,news_11772148]It was this series of legal filings that prompted Lyft to \u003ca href=\"https://blog.lyft.com/posts/reinforcing-lyfts-commitment-to-safety\">announce added safety measures\u003c/a>, including an emergency call button on its app, new training for drivers and a “smart trip check in” that aims to sense when a trip has “unexplained delays” and pings a rider.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, in June 2022, Lyft reached a $25 million settlement to resolve a shareholder class-action lawsuit that claimed the company concealed safety problems, including sexual assaults by drivers, prior to its 2019 initial public offering.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyft did not respond to NPR’s request for comment or updated data on driver and user safety.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://assets.ctfassets.net/q8mvene1wzq4/4t8IQ1XZ3dhEzYRKOzUMid/e1d2a6094ac15e4c2fd7a2462675850b/Community_Safety_Report_Appendix.pdf\">2021 community safety report (PDF)\u003c/a> issued by the company, revealed that more than 4,000 people were assaulted during Lyft rides from 2017–2019. Of those, 320 were attacks of “attempted non-consensual sexual penetration” and 360 were assaults involving “non-consensual sexual penetration.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report included 10 fatal assaults from 2017 through 2019, “involving an individual using the Lyft platform.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the time, the company said that while grim, statistically the numbers are minuscule given the millions of rides offered each year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A more recent \u003ca href=\"https://uber.app.box.com/s/vkx4zgwy6sxx2t2618520xt35rix022h?uclick_id=caa301b1-9f51-4a99-ac42-585420161ed5\">analysis \u003c/a>from Uber showed that company received 3,824 reports of sexual assault and misconduct from 2019 to 2020. According to Uber, riders were the accused party in 43% of the incidents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Human Rights Campaign chief of staff, Jay Brown called the new feature an inclusive product that’s coming “at a time when so many companies are shying away from explicit inclusion of transgender and non-binary people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown added: “When rideshare is better for these folks, it’s better for everyone, and we at HRC stand behind that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org\">npr.org\u003c/a>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 622,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"paragraphCount": 19
},
"modified": 1694807717,
"excerpt": "The new opt-in feature lets women and nonbinary drivers prioritize passengers who fit the same description. But it's not a guarantee and is only available in a handful of cities for now.",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "The new opt-in feature lets women and nonbinary drivers prioritize passengers who fit the same description. But it's not a guarantee and is only available in a handful of cities for now.",
"title": "In Effort to Make Rides Safer, Lyft Launches Women+ Connect | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "In Effort to Make Rides Safer, Lyft Launches Women+ Connect",
"datePublished": "2023-09-15T14:00:43-07:00",
"dateModified": "2023-09-15T12:55:17-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "in-effort-to-make-rides-safer-lyft-launches-women-connect",
"status": "publish",
"nprApiLink": "http://api.npr.org/query?id=1199391219&apiKey=MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004",
"nprStoryDate": "Thu, 14 Sep 2023 21:24:54 -0400",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"nprLastModifiedDate": "Fri, 15 Sep 2023 10:10:34 -0400",
"nprHtmlLink": "https://www.npr.org/2023/09/14/1199391219/in-an-effort-to-make-rides-safer-lyft-launches-women-connect?ft=nprml&f=1199391219",
"nprImageAgency": "AP",
"nprStoryId": "1199391219",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/527855988/vanessa-romo\">Vanessa Romo\u003c/a>",
"nprImageCredit": "David Zalubowski",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"nprRetrievedStory": "1",
"nprPubDate": "Fri, 15 Sep 2023 10:10:00 -0400",
"path": "/news/11961382/in-effort-to-make-rides-safer-lyft-launches-women-connect",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Some women and nonbinary drivers for Lyft can now match up with women and nonbinary riders, using a new feature launched by the rideshare service earlier this week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The in-app option, called Women+ Connect, was added to Lyft’s services in a move to improve safety after \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11773435/lyft-announces-new-safety-features-following-sexual-assault-lawsuit\">a raft of lawsuits\u003c/a> in recent years accused the company of failing to protect passengers and drivers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s also designed to boost the number of women and nonbinary drivers working for the San Francisco-based company. Currently they make up just 23% of the drivers on the platform, according to Lyft.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This highly requested feature offers more control over the driving experience for women and nonbinary people, allowing them to feel that much more confident. And with fewer barriers to driving, more women can access flexible earning opportunities,” Lyft said in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.lyft.com/blog/posts/women-plus-connect\">statement\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drivers can choose to turn on a preference in the Lyft app to prioritize matches with other nearby women and nonbinary riders. It’s the same opt-in type of deal for riders. But it’s not a guarantee. If no riders or drivers matching the descriptions are nearby, they will still be paired up with men.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The added service is only being rolled out in San Francisco, San José, San Diego, Phoenix and Chicago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyft and its primary rival, Uber, have come under increasing scrutiny over safety issues, especially sexual assaults, since launching more than a decade ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last September, Lyft was hit with \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/09/01/1120391757/lyft-lawsuits-assault-allegations'\">17 lawsuits \u003c/a>brought by users, claiming the company failed to protect passengers and drivers from physical and sexual assault. In 2019, it faced another similar \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11772148/14-women-allegedly-assaulted-by-lyft-drivers-sue-the-company\">wave of lawsuits\u003c/a> from women riders who accused the company of knowing about alleged attacks by predatory drivers for years but doing nothing to address the issue.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "Related Stories ",
"postid": "news_11789891,news_11789655,news_11688338,news_11772148"
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>It was this series of legal filings that prompted Lyft to \u003ca href=\"https://blog.lyft.com/posts/reinforcing-lyfts-commitment-to-safety\">announce added safety measures\u003c/a>, including an emergency call button on its app, new training for drivers and a “smart trip check in” that aims to sense when a trip has “unexplained delays” and pings a rider.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, in June 2022, Lyft reached a $25 million settlement to resolve a shareholder class-action lawsuit that claimed the company concealed safety problems, including sexual assaults by drivers, prior to its 2019 initial public offering.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lyft did not respond to NPR’s request for comment or updated data on driver and user safety.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://assets.ctfassets.net/q8mvene1wzq4/4t8IQ1XZ3dhEzYRKOzUMid/e1d2a6094ac15e4c2fd7a2462675850b/Community_Safety_Report_Appendix.pdf\">2021 community safety report (PDF)\u003c/a> issued by the company, revealed that more than 4,000 people were assaulted during Lyft rides from 2017–2019. Of those, 320 were attacks of “attempted non-consensual sexual penetration” and 360 were assaults involving “non-consensual sexual penetration.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The report included 10 fatal assaults from 2017 through 2019, “involving an individual using the Lyft platform.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the time, the company said that while grim, statistically the numbers are minuscule given the millions of rides offered each year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A more recent \u003ca href=\"https://uber.app.box.com/s/vkx4zgwy6sxx2t2618520xt35rix022h?uclick_id=caa301b1-9f51-4a99-ac42-585420161ed5\">analysis \u003c/a>from Uber showed that company received 3,824 reports of sexual assault and misconduct from 2019 to 2020. According to Uber, riders were the accused party in 43% of the incidents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Human Rights Campaign chief of staff, Jay Brown called the new feature an inclusive product that’s coming “at a time when so many companies are shying away from explicit inclusion of transgender and non-binary people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brown added: “When rideshare is better for these folks, it’s better for everyone, and we at HRC stand behind that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org\">npr.org\u003c/a>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/11961382/in-effort-to-make-rides-safer-lyft-launches-women-connect",
"authors": [
"byline_news_11961382"
],
"categories": [
"news_8"
],
"tags": [
"news_4524",
"news_25675"
],
"affiliates": [
"news_253"
],
"featImg": "news_11961383",
"label": "news_253"
},
"news_11944344": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_11944344",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "11944344",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1679526902000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "no-reward-for-loyalty-gig-companies-winning-fight-to-classify-drivers-as-independent",
"title": "'No Reward for Loyalty': Gig Companies Winning Fight to Classify Drivers as Independent",
"publishDate": 1679526902,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "‘No Reward for Loyalty’: Gig Companies Winning Fight to Classify Drivers as Independent | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"term": 72,
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>After a California appeals court \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/news/2023/03/13/california-court-lets-gig-companies-keep-treating-workers-as-contractors-00086898\">upheld most of Proposition 22\u003c/a> last week, it’s widely expected the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) will appeal to the state Supreme Court. That’s even though the union says it’s still considering its options.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label=\"More California Coverage\" tag=\"california\"]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tia Orr, executive director of SEIU California, wrote in an email to KQED, “Drivers have always led this movement, and we will follow their lead as we consider all options — whether that’s seeking review from the California Supreme Court — to ensure that rideshare drivers and delivery workers have access to the same rights and protections afforded to other workers in California.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://vig.cdn.sos.ca.gov/2020/general/pdf/topl-prop22.pdf\">Prop. 22 (PDF)\u003c/a> is widely perceived as a major carve-out of California labor law, allowing Uber, Lyft and similar businesses to classify their drivers as independent contractors, rather than employees. A lower court ruling \u003ca href=\"https://www.marketwatch.com/story/judge-shoots-down-landmark-law-that-kept-uber-and-lyft-drivers-from-being-employees-11629513964\">found the law unconstitutional\u003c/a>. But the \u003ca href=\"https://www.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/A163655.PDF\">two-judge majority on the state appeals panel disagreed (PDF)\u003c/a>, arguing state law has never provided generous labor protections to “all potentially eligible wage workers” in California. There are, for instance, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11939848/a-legacy-of-slavery-for-domestic-workers-californias-new-safety-guidelines-are-long-overdue-say-advocates\">long-standing carve-outs for domestic and agricultural workers\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Rideshare industry reaction exultant\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In a statement following the release of the decision, \u003ca href=\"https://www.lyft.com/blog/posts/lyft-statement-on-california-court-of-appeal-prop-22-decision\">Lyft officials wrote in a blog post\u003c/a>, “We are pleased that the court upheld the democratic will of the voters … We are excited to continue operating our service with no changes.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944379\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944379\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A closeup shot of a black vehicle with a pink Lyft sticker and a black and white Uber sticker on the left side of its windshield. The vehicle sits idle waiting to pick up a customer.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Proposition 22 allows gig companies such as Uber and Lyft to classify their drivers as independent contractors, rather than employees. \u003ccite>(Ericka Cruz Guevarra/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Uber’s chief legal officer, Tony West, wrote in an email to KQED, “Across the state, drivers and couriers have said they are happy with Prop 22, which affords them new benefits while preserving the unique flexibility of app-based work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The 1st District Court of Appeal in San Francisco did invalidate Prop. 22’s most \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/post-it/2020/10/california-amendment-threshold-proposition-22/\">controversial provision\u003c/a>, one that required a close-to-impossible seven-eighths’ vote of the Legislature to pass any bills that modify Prop. 22. But experts don’t expect Uber or Lyft to appeal, lest they risk the possibility the California Supreme Court agrees with the lower court ruling, and/or strike down all of Prop. 22.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Stanford labor law professor William Gould, who served as chair of the National Labor Relations Board from 1994 to 1998, wrote in an email to KQED that he thinks it’s “more than likely that the California Supreme Court will reverse. Should it not do so, the Biden administration’s new wage and hour rule on who is an employee preempts state law and, if drawn inconsistently with Proposition 22, will trump it constitutionally.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a separate but related decision, a unanimous 9th Circuit panel \u003ca href=\"https://www.reuters.com/legal/ubers-challenge-calif-contractor-law-revived-by-us-appeals-court-2023-03-17/\">reinstated Uber and Postmates’ constitutional claim\u003c/a> against California’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/ab5\">Assembly Bill 5\u003c/a> on Friday. The San Francisco-based appeals panel said the state must face claims that the law is unconstitutional because it singles out app-based transportation businesses while exempting many other industries from the need to justify why they classify some workers as contractors rather than employees.[aside label=\"More on Assembly Bill 5\" tag=\"ab5\"]Already, the success of Prop. 22 with California voters at the ballot box in 2020 has inspired a similar measure on the 2024 ballot, one that would \u003ca href=\"https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/ccrov/2023/january/23012jh.pdf\">overturn a new law (PDF)\u003c/a> designed to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/california-divide/ca-divide-workplace/2022/08/fast-food-workers/\">improve wages and working conditions in fast food\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“No question there are a lot of minimum labor law standards in California, and I understand why employers find them onerous to comply with, not to mention expensive,” said UC Berkeley law professor Catherine Fisk, who wrote a friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of a group of California labor and employment law professors opposed to Prop. 22. She added that she’s “disappointed” by the appeals court decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t think it’s really in the public’s best interest to have such a large group of workers who are carved out of the minimum protections of state law. That exists not only to benefit the workers and their families, but the communities that are affected by abject poverty,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Happy to be independent, unhappy about the pay\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>“Scott from LA County,” who drives for Uber, says he didn’t even vote in 2020 when the measure was on the ballot. KQED is not sharing Scott’s last name because because he fears the company might retaliate against him for speaking to KQED; he is unaffiliated with either the SEIU or the industry-backed \u003ca href=\"https://protectdriversandservices.com/about/our-coalition/\">Protect App-Based Drivers and Services coalition\u003c/a> (PADS).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was a little nonchalant about Prop. 22 because I was just getting started, and things were surprisingly good back then,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scott admitted his opinion changed after Prop. 22 took effect the following January, and he watched the measure’s promised 120% of minimum wage become a ceiling for him, rather than a floor. In other words, he makes about $18.60 an hour these days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944396\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944396\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-scaled.jpg\" alt='A man stands with his back to the camera wearing a black T-shirt with yellow writing that reads \"Drivers Union Now.\" In the background, two people hold a large white sign that reads, \"Gig Workers Are Essential.\"' width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gig workers, including rideshare and delivery drivers, with We Drive Progress and Gig Workers Rising demonstrate outside DoorDash headquarters in San Francisco on Nov. 3, 2021, demanding fair pay and employee rights. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“But that’s not what independent contractors got into Uber for, to make 120% of minimum wage,” he said. “In the past, I was making $30, $40, $50 an hour.”[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Scott, rideshare driver\"]‘There’s no reward for loyalty. You just kind of always feel like you’re replaceable.’[/pullquote]That said, Scott still loves choosing his own hours, 20 to 25 a week, and he’s not really bothered by the fact that independent contractors, as defined by Prop. 22, don’t have the same protections as employees under California law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said what bothers him most, aside from making less money, is his sense that the company is driving out gig workers like him — who remember the days before Prop. 22 and can see the work is becoming less profitable — and relying on high turnover to pull in new people who can’t remember when drivers made more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s no reward for loyalty. You just kind of always feel like you’re replaceable,” Scott said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Side hustle or livelihood?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The percentage of rideshare drivers who are full time versus part time has been a point of contention between union-friendly Democratic lawmakers in California and the rideshare companies. A report published last year by UC Riverside’s Center for Economic Forecasting and Development for the industry-backed drivers’ coalition found “\u003ca href=\"https://protectdriversandservices.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/UCR_CEFD_CA_AppDrivers_Analysis_2_17_2022-41.pdf\">only 23% of drivers report working with platforms on what would conventionally be considered a full-time basis\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944401\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944401\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1704\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-2048x1363.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1920x1278.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A demonstrator holds a sign that says ‘Prop 22 Is Unconstitutional’ during a protest outside DoorDash headquarters in San Francisco on Nov. 3, 2021. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In a recent talk before The Economic Club of Chicago, \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=2131&v=HFKrv9Ub9WI&feature=youtu.be\">Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said the weakening economy is bringing more drivers — he calls them “earners” — online\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“About 70% of our earners are saying inflation is actually one of the reasons why they’re coming on to the platform, because they can earn flexibly. And they can, you know, earn another $500 a week for groceries or whatever else they need to live,” Khosrowshahi said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If drivers are only making a little extra money with the platforms versus relying on the driving for their livelihoods, labor lawyers say, it’s easier for gig companies to argue they aren’t exploiting the drivers by refusing to provide them the benefits employees would receive — or exploiting taxpayers by socializing the costs drivers can’t afford to cover on their own.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We saw this during the pandemic, right after Proposition 22 was enacted,” said Fisk, of UC Berkeley. “Every other employer had paid into the unemployment system. So when their workers became unemployed, they could file a claim for unemployment and be compensated. Uber and Lyft exempted themselves from the unemployment system. Their drivers were left penniless. So what did the companies say? ‘Congress has created a system for independent contractors. You should apply to that.’ Who was paying for that? \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11812496/uber-and-lyft-arent-paying-for-drivers-unemployment-you-are-confirms-newsom\">The taxpayers\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "Labor advocates are mulling their options after a California appeals court reversed most of a ruling invalidating Prop. 22, the state's 2020 voter-approved gig economy law allowing ride-hailing and delivery companies to classify workers as independent contractors rather than employees.",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1729027547,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 24,
"wordCount": 1447
},
"headData": {
"title": "'No Reward for Loyalty': Gig Companies Winning Fight to Classify Drivers as Independent | KQED",
"description": "Labor advocates are mulling their options after a California appeals court reversed most of a ruling invalidating Prop. 22, the state's 2020 voter-approved gig economy law allowing ride-hailing and delivery companies to classify workers as independent contractors rather than employees.",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "'No Reward for Loyalty': Gig Companies Winning Fight to Classify Drivers as Independent",
"datePublished": "2023-03-22T16:15:02-07:00",
"dateModified": "2024-10-15T14:25:47-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"audioUrl": "https://traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/0af137ef-751e-4b19-a055-aaef00d2d578/ffca7e9f-6831-4[…]f-aaef00f5a073/4e415b4b-1ff5-4652-a454-afcd0108868a/audio.mp3",
"sticky": false,
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/11944344/no-reward-for-loyalty-gig-companies-winning-fight-to-classify-drivers-as-independent",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>After a California appeals court \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/news/2023/03/13/california-court-lets-gig-companies-keep-treating-workers-as-contractors-00086898\">upheld most of Proposition 22\u003c/a> last week, it’s widely expected the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) will appeal to the state Supreme Court. That’s even though the union says it’s still considering its options.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "More California Coverage ",
"tag": "california"
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tia Orr, executive director of SEIU California, wrote in an email to KQED, “Drivers have always led this movement, and we will follow their lead as we consider all options — whether that’s seeking review from the California Supreme Court — to ensure that rideshare drivers and delivery workers have access to the same rights and protections afforded to other workers in California.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://vig.cdn.sos.ca.gov/2020/general/pdf/topl-prop22.pdf\">Prop. 22 (PDF)\u003c/a> is widely perceived as a major carve-out of California labor law, allowing Uber, Lyft and similar businesses to classify their drivers as independent contractors, rather than employees. A lower court ruling \u003ca href=\"https://www.marketwatch.com/story/judge-shoots-down-landmark-law-that-kept-uber-and-lyft-drivers-from-being-employees-11629513964\">found the law unconstitutional\u003c/a>. But the \u003ca href=\"https://www.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/A163655.PDF\">two-judge majority on the state appeals panel disagreed (PDF)\u003c/a>, arguing state law has never provided generous labor protections to “all potentially eligible wage workers” in California. There are, for instance, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11939848/a-legacy-of-slavery-for-domestic-workers-californias-new-safety-guidelines-are-long-overdue-say-advocates\">long-standing carve-outs for domestic and agricultural workers\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Rideshare industry reaction exultant\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In a statement following the release of the decision, \u003ca href=\"https://www.lyft.com/blog/posts/lyft-statement-on-california-court-of-appeal-prop-22-decision\">Lyft officials wrote in a blog post\u003c/a>, “We are pleased that the court upheld the democratic will of the voters … We are excited to continue operating our service with no changes.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944379\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944379\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"A closeup shot of a black vehicle with a pink Lyft sticker and a black and white Uber sticker on the left side of its windshield. The vehicle sits idle waiting to pick up a customer.\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS16535_IMG_0443.JPG-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Proposition 22 allows gig companies such as Uber and Lyft to classify their drivers as independent contractors, rather than employees. \u003ccite>(Ericka Cruz Guevarra/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Uber’s chief legal officer, Tony West, wrote in an email to KQED, “Across the state, drivers and couriers have said they are happy with Prop 22, which affords them new benefits while preserving the unique flexibility of app-based work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The 1st District Court of Appeal in San Francisco did invalidate Prop. 22’s most \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/post-it/2020/10/california-amendment-threshold-proposition-22/\">controversial provision\u003c/a>, one that required a close-to-impossible seven-eighths’ vote of the Legislature to pass any bills that modify Prop. 22. But experts don’t expect Uber or Lyft to appeal, lest they risk the possibility the California Supreme Court agrees with the lower court ruling, and/or strike down all of Prop. 22.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Stanford labor law professor William Gould, who served as chair of the National Labor Relations Board from 1994 to 1998, wrote in an email to KQED that he thinks it’s “more than likely that the California Supreme Court will reverse. Should it not do so, the Biden administration’s new wage and hour rule on who is an employee preempts state law and, if drawn inconsistently with Proposition 22, will trump it constitutionally.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a separate but related decision, a unanimous 9th Circuit panel \u003ca href=\"https://www.reuters.com/legal/ubers-challenge-calif-contractor-law-revived-by-us-appeals-court-2023-03-17/\">reinstated Uber and Postmates’ constitutional claim\u003c/a> against California’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/ab5\">Assembly Bill 5\u003c/a> on Friday. The San Francisco-based appeals panel said the state must face claims that the law is unconstitutional because it singles out app-based transportation businesses while exempting many other industries from the need to justify why they classify some workers as contractors rather than employees.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "More on Assembly Bill 5 ",
"tag": "ab5"
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Already, the success of Prop. 22 with California voters at the ballot box in 2020 has inspired a similar measure on the 2024 ballot, one that would \u003ca href=\"https://elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov/ccrov/2023/january/23012jh.pdf\">overturn a new law (PDF)\u003c/a> designed to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/california-divide/ca-divide-workplace/2022/08/fast-food-workers/\">improve wages and working conditions in fast food\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“No question there are a lot of minimum labor law standards in California, and I understand why employers find them onerous to comply with, not to mention expensive,” said UC Berkeley law professor Catherine Fisk, who wrote a friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of a group of California labor and employment law professors opposed to Prop. 22. She added that she’s “disappointed” by the appeals court decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t think it’s really in the public’s best interest to have such a large group of workers who are carved out of the minimum protections of state law. That exists not only to benefit the workers and their families, but the communities that are affected by abject poverty,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Happy to be independent, unhappy about the pay\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>“Scott from LA County,” who drives for Uber, says he didn’t even vote in 2020 when the measure was on the ballot. KQED is not sharing Scott’s last name because because he fears the company might retaliate against him for speaking to KQED; he is unaffiliated with either the SEIU or the industry-backed \u003ca href=\"https://protectdriversandservices.com/about/our-coalition/\">Protect App-Based Drivers and Services coalition\u003c/a> (PADS).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was a little nonchalant about Prop. 22 because I was just getting started, and things were surprisingly good back then,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Scott admitted his opinion changed after Prop. 22 took effect the following January, and he watched the measure’s promised 120% of minimum wage become a ceiling for him, rather than a floor. In other words, he makes about $18.60 an hour these days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944396\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944396\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-scaled.jpg\" alt='A man stands with his back to the camera wearing a black T-shirt with yellow writing that reads \"Drivers Union Now.\" In the background, two people hold a large white sign that reads, \"Gig Workers Are Essential.\"' width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52363_004_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gig workers, including rideshare and delivery drivers, with We Drive Progress and Gig Workers Rising demonstrate outside DoorDash headquarters in San Francisco on Nov. 3, 2021, demanding fair pay and employee rights. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“But that’s not what independent contractors got into Uber for, to make 120% of minimum wage,” he said. “In the past, I was making $30, $40, $50 an hour.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "‘There’s no reward for loyalty. You just kind of always feel like you’re replaceable.’",
"name": "pullquote",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"size": "medium",
"align": "right",
"citation": "Scott, rideshare driver",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>That said, Scott still loves choosing his own hours, 20 to 25 a week, and he’s not really bothered by the fact that independent contractors, as defined by Prop. 22, don’t have the same protections as employees under California law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He said what bothers him most, aside from making less money, is his sense that the company is driving out gig workers like him — who remember the days before Prop. 22 and can see the work is becoming less profitable — and relying on high turnover to pull in new people who can’t remember when drivers made more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s no reward for loyalty. You just kind of always feel like you’re replaceable,” Scott said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Side hustle or livelihood?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The percentage of rideshare drivers who are full time versus part time has been a point of contention between union-friendly Democratic lawmakers in California and the rideshare companies. A report published last year by UC Riverside’s Center for Economic Forecasting and Development for the industry-backed drivers’ coalition found “\u003ca href=\"https://protectdriversandservices.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/UCR_CEFD_CA_AppDrivers_Analysis_2_17_2022-41.pdf\">only 23% of drivers report working with platforms on what would conventionally be considered a full-time basis\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11944401\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11944401\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1704\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-2048x1363.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS52369_011_SanFrancisco_GigWorkerProtest_11032021-1920x1278.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A demonstrator holds a sign that says ‘Prop 22 Is Unconstitutional’ during a protest outside DoorDash headquarters in San Francisco on Nov. 3, 2021. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In a recent talk before The Economic Club of Chicago, \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=2131&v=HFKrv9Ub9WI&feature=youtu.be\">Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said the weakening economy is bringing more drivers — he calls them “earners” — online\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“About 70% of our earners are saying inflation is actually one of the reasons why they’re coming on to the platform, because they can earn flexibly. And they can, you know, earn another $500 a week for groceries or whatever else they need to live,” Khosrowshahi said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If drivers are only making a little extra money with the platforms versus relying on the driving for their livelihoods, labor lawyers say, it’s easier for gig companies to argue they aren’t exploiting the drivers by refusing to provide them the benefits employees would receive — or exploiting taxpayers by socializing the costs drivers can’t afford to cover on their own.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We saw this during the pandemic, right after Proposition 22 was enacted,” said Fisk, of UC Berkeley. “Every other employer had paid into the unemployment system. So when their workers became unemployed, they could file a claim for unemployment and be compensated. Uber and Lyft exempted themselves from the unemployment system. Their drivers were left penniless. So what did the companies say? ‘Congress has created a system for independent contractors. You should apply to that.’ Who was paying for that? \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11812496/uber-and-lyft-arent-paying-for-drivers-unemployment-you-are-confirms-newsom\">The taxpayers\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/11944344/no-reward-for-loyalty-gig-companies-winning-fight-to-classify-drivers-as-independent",
"authors": [
"251"
],
"programs": [
"news_72"
],
"categories": [
"news_31795",
"news_1758",
"news_8",
"news_33520",
"news_248"
],
"tags": [
"news_17994",
"news_26585",
"news_4524",
"news_25675",
"news_4658",
"news_1631",
"news_4523"
],
"featImg": "news_11944370",
"label": "news_72"
},
"news_11943454": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_11943454",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "11943454",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1678825642000
]
},
"parent": 0,
"labelTerm": {
"site": "news",
"term": 18481
},
"blocks": [],
"publishDate": 1678825642,
"format": "standard",
"title": "Court Upholds Prop. 22 in Big Win for Gig Firms Like Lyft and Uber",
"headTitle": "CALmatters | KQED News",
"content": "\u003cp>In the winding story of California’s gig-worker laws, another chapter has come to a close.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Justices in a California court of appeals on Monday ruled that Proposition 22 — a 2020 ballot measure that allowed Uber, Lyft and other \"gig\" companies to classify their workers as independent contractors rather than employees — is largely constitutional.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The distinction between employees and contractors is important: Unlike independent contractors, employees have the right to a host of benefits and protections like minimum wage, sick leave and family leave, unemployment and disability benefits, and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The three court of appeals judges in San Francisco, who heard oral arguments in the case in December, disagreed with two of the three points of a lower court's ruling that had largely \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2021-08-20/prop-22-unconstitutional\">invalidated Prop. 22\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the judges on Monday did agree with the lower court that a clause in the measure — requiring collective bargaining to occur through an amendment to the proposition — “violates separation of powers principles,” and ordered it be removed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even so, the appeals court ruling leaves most of Prop. 22 intact.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Supporters of the measure were quick to celebrate the decision, with the Protect App-Based Drivers and Services coalition, which includes Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and Instacart, calling it “a victory for the nearly 1.4 million drivers” in California.[aside label=\"related coverage\" tag=\"proposition-22\"]“Voters knew what they were voting on,” said Jennifer Barrera, president of the California Chamber of Commerce. “They wanted to maintain the flexibility for these gig workers and provide them the opportunity to do this work. And I think that’s ultimately what the judge did — is to uphold that flexibility.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But while this chapter has drawn to a close, the story probably isn’t over. The Service Employees International Union is challenging the constitutionality of the measure and may appeal the ruling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Drivers have always led this movement, and we will follow their lead as we consider all options — including seeking review from the [California] Supreme Court — to ensure that gig drivers and delivery workers have access to the same rights and protections afforded to other workers in California,” Tia Orr, executive director of SEIU California, said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, executive secretary-treasurer of the California Labor Federation, an umbrella organization for labor unions, which opposed Prop. 22, lambasted the ruling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Today the Appeals Court chose to stand with powerful corporations over working people, allowing companies to buy their way out of our state’s labor laws and undermine our state constitution,” she said in a statement. “Our system is broken. It would be an understatement to say we are disappointed by this decision.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an interview earlier this month, \u003ca href=\"https://www.law.berkeley.edu/our-faculty/faculty-profiles/catherine-fisk/\">UC Berkeley Law professor Catherine Fisk\u003c/a> said she’d be “stunned” if whichever side lost didn’t appeal the decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s just too much money at stake — for both sides,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The judicial system moves slowly, so it could be months before the California Supreme Court decides on whether or not to hear an appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The case has ramifications beyond this initiative, said \u003ca href=\"https://www.nmgovlaw.com/team/kurt-oneto/\">Kurt Oneto, an attorney with Nielsen Merksamer\u003c/a>, the firm representing the coalition of gig companies, and is defending the ballot measure in court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The challenges to the initiative “would drastically undercut and restrain the initiative power of California voters,” he told CalMatters earlier this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But ultimately at stake are the kinds of pay, benefits and legal protections that drivers are entitled to, said \u003ca href=\"https://altshulerberzon.com/attorneys/stacey-leyton/\">Stacey Leyton, attorney with Altshuler Berzon\u003c/a>, the law firm representing SEIU and workers in challenging the ballot measure.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the effects will extend beyond drivers, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When companies exploit their workers and misclassify their workers, it has the effect of harming all workers,” said Leyton.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>How did we get here?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>California’s battle over the classification of workers began in 2018, when the state Supreme Court issued a ruling that \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2018/08/companies-beg-for-relief-from-pro-labor-gig-worker-ruling/\">established a new standard for who can be counted as an independent contractor\u003c/a>. That decision spurred a \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2019/09/whos-in-whos-out-of-ab-5/\">new state law\u003c/a> that classified workers in many sectors — including truckers, commercial janitors, nail salon workers, physical therapists and gig economy workers — as employees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After failing to get the ride-share industry exempted from the new law, Uber and Lyft upped the ante, \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/story/2019-08-29/ab5-uber-lyft-newsom-lorena-gonzalez-ballot-tony-west\">threatening to write a ballot measure\u003c/a> to do so unless they could negotiate another deal. They argued that changing the employment status of drivers would reduce workers’ flexibility and “\u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/openforum/article/Open-Forum-Uber-Lyft-ready-to-do-our-part-for-13969843.php?\">pose a risk to our businesses\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2020, the companies forged ahead with Prop. 22, which became a pitched battle between labor and business, \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/projects/props-california-2020-election-money/\">breaking state campaign finance records\u003c/a> in the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/election-2020-guide/proposition-22-gig-workers-ab-5/\">classifying workers as independent contractors\u003c/a>, the measure offered gig workers \u003ca href=\"https://lao.ca.gov/BallotAnalysis/Proposition?number=22&year=2020\">certain incentives\u003c/a>, in lieu of standard employee benefits, including 120% of minimum wage for “active” driving time (but not time waiting), a partial health care subsidy for those who clocked enough hours per week, and on-the-job injury coverage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/election-2020-guide/proposition-22-gig-workers-ab-5/\">measure passed\u003c/a> with 58% of the vote in November 2020.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Shortly after Prop. 22 passed, SEIU and a group of drivers mounted a \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/story/2021-01-12/prop-22-faces-first-legal-challenge-from-ride-share-drivers-seiu\">legal challenge\u003c/a>, arguing that it violated California’s constitution. Their case was eventually heard by a judge in Alameda County Superior Court, who in 2021 struck down \u003ca href=\"https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/c5/f5/7bba477c4a839d1edd9f5b5a75e9/prop-22-alameda-superior-ct.%208-20-21.pdf\">Prop. 22 (PDF)\u003c/a> as unconstitutional. But attorneys representing the state and the coalition representing gig companies appealed that decision, sending it to the appeals court.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 id=\"h-what-s-happened-since-prop-22-went-into-effect\">What's happened since Prop. 22 went into effect\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>What has changed — for better or worse — since the measure took effect depends somewhat on who you ask.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jose Pineda, a driver for DoorDash in Northridge who was referred to CalMatters by the industry coalition, says his hourly pay has increased from about $23–$25 (before costs) to $27–$30. After switching from Medi-Cal to an insurance plan through Covered California, he receives a health stipend of about $75 every two weeks, he said. He supported Prop. 22, and said, “I think it’s good. I think we need it. I mean, what else is out there?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Contrast that with the experience of Daryush Khodadadi-Mobarakeh, who was referred to CalMatters by SEIU. Khodadadi-Mobarakeh, who drives 35 to 40 hours a week for several companies, including Uber, Lyft and DoorDash, and is a leader with the California Gig Workers Union, said his pay has consistently decreased since he began working in 2014, and particularly after Prop. 22 went into effect.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now it takes him about 12 hours to make the same amount he used to earn in eight hours before Prop. 22, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>How drivers’ wages have been affected by Prop. 22 depends in part on how working hours and expenses are calculated (and who's doing the research). A \u003ca href=\"https://protectdriversandservices.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/UCR_CEFD_CA_AppDrivers_Analysis_2_17_2022-41.pdf\">study paid for by the industry coalition \u003c/a>and conducted by researchers at UC Riverside found that in late 2021, drivers for DoorDash, Instacart, Lyft and Uber earned $34.46 in gross pay per hour of “engaged” time — the time between accepting a ride or delivery and dropping off the order or rider. That was up from $27.34 in late 2019, before the measure passed. Those wages don’t account for the time workers spend waiting between rides, or costs like fuel, car maintenance and insurance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But a \u003ca href=\"https://nationalequityatlas.org/prop22-paystudy\">study of Uber and Lyft drivers\u003c/a> conducted by National Equity Atlas, in partnership with Rideshare Drivers United, which opposed Prop. 22, found that drivers on average earned $26.30 in gross wages per hour in late 2021. But the study then calculated the cost of employee benefits that gig workers don't receive — including reimbursement for total miles driven and employer contributions to programs including Social Security, Medicare, unemployment insurance and paid sick time. When figured into the equation, drivers' net wages dropped to $6.20 per hour, the study found.\u003c/p>\n\n",
"stats": {
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"hasAudio": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"wordCount": 1369,
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"paragraphCount": 33
},
"modified": 1678825642,
"excerpt": "An appeals court ruled Monday in favor of companies that want to classify some workers as independent contractors, saying that Proposition 22 is mostly constitutional.",
"headData": {
"twImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twDescription": "",
"description": "An appeals court ruled Monday in favor of companies that want to classify some workers as independent contractors, saying that Proposition 22 is mostly constitutional.",
"title": "Court Upholds Prop. 22 in Big Win for Gig Firms Like Lyft and Uber | KQED",
"ogDescription": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "Court Upholds Prop. 22 in Big Win for Gig Firms Like Lyft and Uber",
"datePublished": "2023-03-14T13:27:22-07:00",
"dateModified": "2023-03-14T13:27:22-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "court-upholds-prop-22-in-big-win-for-gig-firms-like-lyft-and-uber",
"status": "publish",
"nprByline": "\u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/author/grace-gedye/\">Grace Gedye\u003c/a>",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/11943454/court-upholds-prop-22-in-big-win-for-gig-firms-like-lyft-and-uber",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>In the winding story of California’s gig-worker laws, another chapter has come to a close.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Justices in a California court of appeals on Monday ruled that Proposition 22 — a 2020 ballot measure that allowed Uber, Lyft and other \"gig\" companies to classify their workers as independent contractors rather than employees — is largely constitutional.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The distinction between employees and contractors is important: Unlike independent contractors, employees have the right to a host of benefits and protections like minimum wage, sick leave and family leave, unemployment and disability benefits, and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The three court of appeals judges in San Francisco, who heard oral arguments in the case in December, disagreed with two of the three points of a lower court's ruling that had largely \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2021-08-20/prop-22-unconstitutional\">invalidated Prop. 22\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the judges on Monday did agree with the lower court that a clause in the measure — requiring collective bargaining to occur through an amendment to the proposition — “violates separation of powers principles,” and ordered it be removed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even so, the appeals court ruling leaves most of Prop. 22 intact.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Supporters of the measure were quick to celebrate the decision, with the Protect App-Based Drivers and Services coalition, which includes Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and Instacart, calling it “a victory for the nearly 1.4 million drivers” in California.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "related coverage ",
"tag": "proposition-22"
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“Voters knew what they were voting on,” said Jennifer Barrera, president of the California Chamber of Commerce. “They wanted to maintain the flexibility for these gig workers and provide them the opportunity to do this work. And I think that’s ultimately what the judge did — is to uphold that flexibility.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But while this chapter has drawn to a close, the story probably isn’t over. The Service Employees International Union is challenging the constitutionality of the measure and may appeal the ruling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Drivers have always led this movement, and we will follow their lead as we consider all options — including seeking review from the [California] Supreme Court — to ensure that gig drivers and delivery workers have access to the same rights and protections afforded to other workers in California,” Tia Orr, executive director of SEIU California, said in a statement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, executive secretary-treasurer of the California Labor Federation, an umbrella organization for labor unions, which opposed Prop. 22, lambasted the ruling.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Today the Appeals Court chose to stand with powerful corporations over working people, allowing companies to buy their way out of our state’s labor laws and undermine our state constitution,” she said in a statement. “Our system is broken. It would be an understatement to say we are disappointed by this decision.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an interview earlier this month, \u003ca href=\"https://www.law.berkeley.edu/our-faculty/faculty-profiles/catherine-fisk/\">UC Berkeley Law professor Catherine Fisk\u003c/a> said she’d be “stunned” if whichever side lost didn’t appeal the decision.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There’s just too much money at stake — for both sides,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The judicial system moves slowly, so it could be months before the California Supreme Court decides on whether or not to hear an appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The case has ramifications beyond this initiative, said \u003ca href=\"https://www.nmgovlaw.com/team/kurt-oneto/\">Kurt Oneto, an attorney with Nielsen Merksamer\u003c/a>, the firm representing the coalition of gig companies, and is defending the ballot measure in court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The challenges to the initiative “would drastically undercut and restrain the initiative power of California voters,” he told CalMatters earlier this year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But ultimately at stake are the kinds of pay, benefits and legal protections that drivers are entitled to, said \u003ca href=\"https://altshulerberzon.com/attorneys/stacey-leyton/\">Stacey Leyton, attorney with Altshuler Berzon\u003c/a>, the law firm representing SEIU and workers in challenging the ballot measure.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the effects will extend beyond drivers, she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When companies exploit their workers and misclassify their workers, it has the effect of harming all workers,” said Leyton.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>How did we get here?\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>California’s battle over the classification of workers began in 2018, when the state Supreme Court issued a ruling that \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2018/08/companies-beg-for-relief-from-pro-labor-gig-worker-ruling/\">established a new standard for who can be counted as an independent contractor\u003c/a>. That decision spurred a \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/economy/2019/09/whos-in-whos-out-of-ab-5/\">new state law\u003c/a> that classified workers in many sectors — including truckers, commercial janitors, nail salon workers, physical therapists and gig economy workers — as employees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After failing to get the ride-share industry exempted from the new law, Uber and Lyft upped the ante, \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/story/2019-08-29/ab5-uber-lyft-newsom-lorena-gonzalez-ballot-tony-west\">threatening to write a ballot measure\u003c/a> to do so unless they could negotiate another deal. They argued that changing the employment status of drivers would reduce workers’ flexibility and “\u003ca href=\"https://www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/openforum/article/Open-Forum-Uber-Lyft-ready-to-do-our-part-for-13969843.php?\">pose a risk to our businesses\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2020, the companies forged ahead with Prop. 22, which became a pitched battle between labor and business, \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/projects/props-california-2020-election-money/\">breaking state campaign finance records\u003c/a> in the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/election-2020-guide/proposition-22-gig-workers-ab-5/\">classifying workers as independent contractors\u003c/a>, the measure offered gig workers \u003ca href=\"https://lao.ca.gov/BallotAnalysis/Proposition?number=22&year=2020\">certain incentives\u003c/a>, in lieu of standard employee benefits, including 120% of minimum wage for “active” driving time (but not time waiting), a partial health care subsidy for those who clocked enough hours per week, and on-the-job injury coverage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/election-2020-guide/proposition-22-gig-workers-ab-5/\">measure passed\u003c/a> with 58% of the vote in November 2020.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Shortly after Prop. 22 passed, SEIU and a group of drivers mounted a \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/story/2021-01-12/prop-22-faces-first-legal-challenge-from-ride-share-drivers-seiu\">legal challenge\u003c/a>, arguing that it violated California’s constitution. Their case was eventually heard by a judge in Alameda County Superior Court, who in 2021 struck down \u003ca href=\"https://ca-times.brightspotcdn.com/c5/f5/7bba477c4a839d1edd9f5b5a75e9/prop-22-alameda-superior-ct.%208-20-21.pdf\">Prop. 22 (PDF)\u003c/a> as unconstitutional. But attorneys representing the state and the coalition representing gig companies appealed that decision, sending it to the appeals court.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2 id=\"h-what-s-happened-since-prop-22-went-into-effect\">What's happened since Prop. 22 went into effect\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>What has changed — for better or worse — since the measure took effect depends somewhat on who you ask.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jose Pineda, a driver for DoorDash in Northridge who was referred to CalMatters by the industry coalition, says his hourly pay has increased from about $23–$25 (before costs) to $27–$30. After switching from Medi-Cal to an insurance plan through Covered California, he receives a health stipend of about $75 every two weeks, he said. He supported Prop. 22, and said, “I think it’s good. I think we need it. I mean, what else is out there?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Contrast that with the experience of Daryush Khodadadi-Mobarakeh, who was referred to CalMatters by SEIU. Khodadadi-Mobarakeh, who drives 35 to 40 hours a week for several companies, including Uber, Lyft and DoorDash, and is a leader with the California Gig Workers Union, said his pay has consistently decreased since he began working in 2014, and particularly after Prop. 22 went into effect.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now it takes him about 12 hours to make the same amount he used to earn in eight hours before Prop. 22, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>How drivers’ wages have been affected by Prop. 22 depends in part on how working hours and expenses are calculated (and who's doing the research). A \u003ca href=\"https://protectdriversandservices.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/UCR_CEFD_CA_AppDrivers_Analysis_2_17_2022-41.pdf\">study paid for by the industry coalition \u003c/a>and conducted by researchers at UC Riverside found that in late 2021, drivers for DoorDash, Instacart, Lyft and Uber earned $34.46 in gross pay per hour of “engaged” time — the time between accepting a ride or delivery and dropping off the order or rider. That was up from $27.34 in late 2019, before the measure passed. Those wages don’t account for the time workers spend waiting between rides, or costs like fuel, car maintenance and insurance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But a \u003ca href=\"https://nationalequityatlas.org/prop22-paystudy\">study of Uber and Lyft drivers\u003c/a> conducted by National Equity Atlas, in partnership with Rideshare Drivers United, which opposed Prop. 22, found that drivers on average earned $26.30 in gross wages per hour in late 2021. But the study then calculated the cost of employee benefits that gig workers don't receive — including reimbursement for total miles driven and employer contributions to programs including Social Security, Medicare, unemployment insurance and paid sick time. When figured into the equation, drivers' net wages dropped to $6.20 per hour, the study found.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/11943454/court-upholds-prop-22-in-big-win-for-gig-firms-like-lyft-and-uber",
"authors": [
"byline_news_11943454"
],
"categories": [
"news_8"
],
"tags": [
"news_26585",
"news_4524",
"news_28695",
"news_32528",
"news_25675",
"news_20517",
"news_4523"
],
"affiliates": [
"news_18481"
],
"featImg": "news_11843813",
"label": "news_18481"
}
},
"programsReducer": {
"all-things-considered": {
"id": "all-things-considered",
"title": "All Things Considered",
"info": "Every weekday, \u003cem>All Things Considered\u003c/em> hosts Robert Siegel, Audie Cornish, Ari Shapiro, and Kelly McEvers present the program's trademark mix of news, interviews, commentaries, reviews, and offbeat features. Michel Martin hosts on the weekends.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 1pm-2pm, 4:30pm-6:30pm\u003cbr />SAT-SUN 5pm-6pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/All-Things-Considered-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/all-things-considered/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/all-things-considered"
},
"american-suburb-podcast": {
"id": "american-suburb-podcast",
"title": "American Suburb: The Podcast",
"tagline": "The flip side of gentrification, told through one town",
"info": "Gentrification is changing cities across America, forcing people from neighborhoods they have long called home. Call them the displaced. Now those priced out of the Bay Area are looking for a better life in an unlikely place. American Suburb follows this migration to one California town along the Delta, 45 miles from San Francisco. But is this once sleepy suburb ready for them?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/American-Suburb-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/news/series/american-suburb-podcast",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 19
},
"link": "/news/series/american-suburb-podcast/",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/RBrW",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?mt=2&id=1287748328",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/American-Suburb-p1086805/",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/series/american-suburb-podcast/feed/podcast",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkMzMDExODgxNjA5"
}
},
"baycurious": {
"id": "baycurious",
"title": "Bay Curious",
"tagline": "Exploring the Bay Area, one question at a time",
"info": "KQED’s new podcast, Bay Curious, gets to the bottom of the mysteries — both profound and peculiar — that give the Bay Area its unique identity. And we’ll do it with your help! You ask the questions. You decide what Bay Curious investigates. And you join us on the journey to find the answers.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Bay-Curious-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "\"KQED Bay Curious",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/news/series/baycurious",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 3
},
"link": "/podcasts/baycurious",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bay-curious/id1172473406",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/500557090/bay-curious",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/category/bay-curious-podcast/feed/podcast",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvbmV3cy9jYXRlZ29yeS9iYXktY3VyaW91cy1wb2RjYXN0L2ZlZWQvcG9kY2FzdA",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/bay-curious",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/6O76IdmhixfijmhTZLIJ8k"
}
},
"bbc-world-service": {
"id": "bbc-world-service",
"title": "BBC World Service",
"info": "The day's top stories from BBC News compiled twice daily in the week, once at weekends.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 9pm-10pm, TUE-FRI 1am-2am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/BBC-World-Service-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live:bbc_world_service",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "BBC World Service"
},
"link": "/radio/program/bbc-world-service",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/global-news-podcast/id135067274?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/BBC-World-Service-p455581/",
"rss": "https://podcasts.files.bbci.co.uk/p02nq0gn.rss"
}
},
"californiareport": {
"id": "californiareport",
"title": "The California Report",
"tagline": "California, day by day",
"info": "KQED’s statewide radio news program providing daily coverage of issues, trends and public policy decisions.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-California-Report-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The California Report",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareport",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 8
},
"link": "/californiareport",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kqeds-the-california-report/id79681292",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1MDAyODE4NTgz",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432285393/the-california-report",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqedfm-kqeds-the-california-report-podcast-8838",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/tcram/feed/podcast"
}
},
"californiareportmagazine": {
"id": "californiareportmagazine",
"title": "The California Report Magazine",
"tagline": "Your state, your stories",
"info": "Every week, The California Report Magazine takes you on a road trip for the ears: to visit the places and meet the people who make California unique. The in-depth storytelling podcast from the California Report.",
"airtime": "FRI 4:30pm-5pm, 6:30pm-7pm, 11pm-11:30pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-California-Report-Magazine-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The California Report Magazine",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareportmagazine",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 10
},
"link": "/californiareportmagazine",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-california-report-magazine/id1314750545",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM3NjkwNjk1OTAz",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/564733126/the-california-report-magazine",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-california-report-magazine",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/tcrmag/feed/podcast"
}
},
"city-arts": {
"id": "city-arts",
"title": "City Arts & Lectures",
"info": "A one-hour radio program to hear celebrated writers, artists and thinkers address contemporary ideas and values, often discussing the creative process. Please note: tapes or transcripts are not available",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/cityartsandlecture-300x300.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.cityarts.net/",
"airtime": "SUN 1pm-2pm, TUE 10pm, WED 1am",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "City Arts & Lectures"
},
"link": "https://www.cityarts.net",
"subscribe": {
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/City-Arts-and-Lectures-p692/",
"rss": "https://www.cityarts.net/feed/"
}
},
"closealltabs": {
"id": "closealltabs",
"title": "Close All Tabs",
"tagline": "Your irreverent guide to the trends redefining our world",
"info": "Close All Tabs breaks down how digital culture shapes our world through thoughtful insights and irreverent humor.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/CAT_2_Tile-scaled.jpg",
"imageAlt": "\"KQED Close All Tabs",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/closealltabs",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 1
},
"link": "/podcasts/closealltabs",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/close-all-tabs/id214663465",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC6993880386",
"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/92d9d4ac-67a3-4eed-b10a-fb45d45b1ef2/close-all-tabs",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/6LAJFHnGK1pYXYzv6SIol6?si=deb0cae19813417c"
}
},
"code-switch-life-kit": {
"id": "code-switch-life-kit",
"title": "Code Switch / Life Kit",
"info": "\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />",
"airtime": "SUN 9pm-10pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Code-Switch-Life-Kit-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/code-switch-life-kit",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/1112190608?mt=2&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnByLm9yZy9yc3MvcG9kY2FzdC5waHA_aWQ9NTEwMzEy",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/3bExJ9JQpkwNhoHvaIIuyV",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510312/podcast.xml"
}
},
"commonwealth-club": {
"id": "commonwealth-club",
"title": "Commonwealth Club of California Podcast",
"info": "The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.",
"airtime": "THU 10pm, FRI 1am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Commonwealth-Club-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.commonwealthclub.org/podcasts",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
},
"link": "/radio/program/commonwealth-club",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/commonwealth-club-of-california-podcast/id976334034?mt=2",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Commonwealth-Club-of-California-p1060/"
}
},
"forum": {
"id": "forum",
"title": "Forum",
"tagline": "The conversation starts here",
"info": "KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 9am-11am, 10pm-11pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Forum with Mina Kim and Alexis Madrigal",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/forum",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 9
},
"link": "/forum",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kqeds-forum/id73329719",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5NTU3MzgxNjMz",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432307980/forum",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqedfm-kqeds-forum-podcast",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC9557381633"
}
},
"freakonomics-radio": {
"id": "freakonomics-radio",
"title": "Freakonomics Radio",
"info": "Freakonomics Radio is a one-hour award-winning podcast and public-radio project hosted by Stephen Dubner, with co-author Steve Levitt as a regular guest. It is produced in partnership with WNYC.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/freakonomicsRadio.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://freakonomics.com/",
"airtime": "SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/freakonomics-radio",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/4s8b",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/Freakonomics-Radio-p272293/",
"rss": "https://feeds.feedburner.com/freakonomicsradio"
}
},
"fresh-air": {
"id": "fresh-air",
"title": "Fresh Air",
"info": "Hosted by Terry Gross, \u003cem>Fresh Air from WHYY\u003c/em> is the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues. One of public radio's most popular programs, Fresh Air features intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 7pm-8pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fresh-Air-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/fresh-air/",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/fresh-air",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/4s8b",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=214089682&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Fresh-Air-p17/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/381444908/podcast.xml"
}
},
"here-and-now": {
"id": "here-and-now",
"title": "Here & Now",
"info": "A live production of NPR and WBUR Boston, in collaboration with stations across the country, Here & Now reflects the fluid world of news as it's happening in the middle of the day, with timely, in-depth news, interviews and conversation. Hosted by Robin Young, Jeremy Hobson and Tonya Mosley.",
"airtime": "MON-THU 11am-12pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Here-And-Now-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://www.wbur.org/hereandnow",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/here-and-now",
"subsdcribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?mt=2&id=426698661",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Here--Now-p211/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510051/podcast.xml"
}
},
"hidden-brain": {
"id": "hidden-brain",
"title": "Hidden Brain",
"info": "Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/hiddenbrain.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/series/423302056/hidden-brain",
"airtime": "SUN 7pm-8pm",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "NPR"
},
"link": "/radio/program/hidden-brain",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hidden-brain/id1028908750?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/Science-Podcasts/Hidden-Brain-p787503/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510308/podcast.xml"
}
},
"how-i-built-this": {
"id": "how-i-built-this",
"title": "How I Built This with Guy Raz",
"info": "Guy Raz dives into the stories behind some of the world's best known companies. How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/howIBuiltThis.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this",
"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/how-i-built-this",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/3zxy",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-built-this-with-guy-raz/id1150510297?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/Arts--Culture-Podcasts/How-I-Built-This-p910896/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510313/podcast.xml"
}
},
"hyphenacion": {
"id": "hyphenacion",
"title": "Hyphenación",
"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hyphenacion_FinalAssets_PodcastTile.png",
"imageAlt": "KQED Hyphenación",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 15
},
"link": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hyphenaci%C3%B3n/id1191591838",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/2p3Fifq96nw9BPcmFdIq0o?si=39209f7b25774f38",
"youtube": "https://www.youtube.com/c/kqedarts",
"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/6c3dd23c-93fb-4aab-97ba-1725fa6315f1/hyphenaci%C3%B3n",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC2275451163"
}
},
"jerrybrown": {
"id": "jerrybrown",
"title": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"tagline": "Lessons from a lifetime in politics",
"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Political-Mind-of-Jerry-Brown-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 18
},
"link": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/790253322/the-political-mind-of-jerry-brown",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1492194549",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/series/jerrybrown/feed/podcast/",
"tuneIn": "http://tun.in/pjGcK",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-political-mind-of-jerry-brown",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/54C1dmuyFyKMFttY6X2j6r?si=K8SgRCoISNK6ZbjpXrX5-w",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvbmV3cy9zZXJpZXMvamVycnlicm93bi9mZWVkL3BvZGNhc3Qv"
}
},
"latino-usa": {
"id": "latino-usa",
"title": "Latino USA",
"airtime": "MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm",
"info": "Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://latinousa.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/latino-usa",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/xtTd",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Latino-USA-p621/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"
}
},
"marketplace": {
"id": "marketplace",
"title": "Marketplace",
"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Marketplace-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.marketplace.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=201853034&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/APM-Marketplace-p88/",
"rss": "https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/marketplace-pm/rss/rss"
}
},
"masters-of-scale": {
"id": "masters-of-scale",
"title": "Masters of Scale",
"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
"airtime": "Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Masters-of-Scale-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WaitWhat"
},
"link": "/radio/program/masters-of-scale",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "http://mastersofscale.app.link/",
"rss": "https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"
}
},
"mindshift": {
"id": "mindshift",
"title": "MindShift",
"tagline": "A podcast about the future of learning and how we raise our kids",
"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Mindshift-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED MindShift: How We Will Learn",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/mindshift/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 12
},
"link": "/podcasts/mindshift",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mindshift-podcast/id1078765985",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/464615685/mind-shift-podcast",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/stories-teachers-share",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/0MxSpNYZKNprFLCl7eEtyx"
}
},
"morning-edition": {
"id": "morning-edition",
"title": "Morning Edition",
"info": "\u003cem>Morning Edition\u003c/em> takes listeners around the country and the world with multi-faceted stories and commentaries every weekday. Hosts Steve Inskeep, David Greene and Rachel Martin bring you the latest breaking news and features to prepare you for the day.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3am-9am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Morning-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/morning-edition"
},
"onourwatch": {
"id": "onourwatch",
"title": "On Our Watch",
"tagline": "Deeply-reported investigative journalism",
"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/On-Our-Watch-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "On Our Watch from NPR and KQED",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 11
},
"link": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1567098962",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM2MC9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbD9zYz1nb29nbGVwb2RjYXN0cw",
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/onourwatch",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/0OLWoyizopu6tY1XiuX70x",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/On-Our-Watch-p1436229/",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/show/on-our-watch",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510360/podcast.xml"
}
},
"on-the-media": {
"id": "on-the-media",
"title": "On The Media",
"info": "Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm-3pm, MON 12am-1am",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/onTheMedia.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/otm",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "wnyc"
},
"link": "/radio/program/on-the-media",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-media/id73330715?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/On-the-Media-p69/",
"rss": "http://feeds.wnyc.org/onthemedia"
}
},
"pbs-newshour": {
"id": "pbs-newshour",
"title": "PBS NewsHour",
"info": "Analysis, background reports and updates from the PBS NewsHour putting today's news in context.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PBS-News-Hour-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "pbs"
},
"link": "/radio/program/pbs-newshour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pbs-newshour-full-show/id394432287?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/PBS-NewsHour---Full-Show-p425698/",
"rss": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/feeds/rss/podcasts/show"
}
},
"perspectives": {
"id": "perspectives",
"title": "Perspectives",
"tagline": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991",
"info": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Perspectives_Tile_Final.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/perspectives/",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 14
},
"link": "/perspectives",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id73801135",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432309616/perspectives",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/perspectives/category/perspectives/feed/",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvcGVyc3BlY3RpdmVzL2NhdGVnb3J5L3BlcnNwZWN0aXZlcy9mZWVkLw"
}
},
"planet-money": {
"id": "planet-money",
"title": "Planet Money",
"info": "The economy explained. Imagine you could call up a friend and say, Meet me at the bar and tell me what's going on with the economy. Now imagine that's actually a fun evening.",
"airtime": "SUN 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/planetmoney.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/sections/money/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/planet-money",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/M4f5",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/planet-money/id290783428?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/Business--Economics-Podcasts/Planet-Money-p164680/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510289/podcast.xml"
}
},
"politicalbreakdown": {
"id": "politicalbreakdown",
"title": "Political Breakdown",
"tagline": "Politics from a personal perspective",
"info": "Political Breakdown is a new series that explores the political intersection of California and the nation. Each week hosts Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos are joined with a new special guest to unpack politics -- with personality — and offer an insider’s glimpse at how politics happens.",
"airtime": "THU 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Political-Breakdown-2024-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Political Breakdown",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/politicalbreakdown",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 5
},
"link": "/podcasts/politicalbreakdown",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/political-breakdown/id1327641087",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5Nzk2MzI2MTEx",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/572155894/political-breakdown",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/political-breakdown",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/07RVyIjIdk2WDuVehvBMoN",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/political-breakdown/feed/podcast"
}
},
"possible": {
"id": "possible",
"title": "Possible",
"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Possible-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.possible.fm/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "Possible"
},
"link": "/radio/program/possible",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/possible/id1677184070",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/730YpdUSNlMyPQwNnyjp4k"
}
},
"pri-the-world": {
"id": "pri-the-world",
"title": "PRI's The World: Latest Edition",
"info": "Each weekday, host Marco Werman and his team of producers bring you the world's most interesting stories in an hour of radio that reminds us just how small our planet really is.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 2pm-3pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-World-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.pri.org/programs/the-world",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "PRI"
},
"link": "/radio/program/pri-the-world",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pris-the-world-latest-edition/id278196007?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/News--Politics-Podcasts/PRIs-The-World-p24/",
"rss": "http://feeds.feedburner.com/pri/theworld"
}
},
"radiolab": {
"id": "radiolab",
"title": "Radiolab",
"info": "A two-time Peabody Award-winner, Radiolab is an investigation told through sounds and stories, and centered around one big idea. In the Radiolab world, information sounds like music and science and culture collide. Hosted by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, the show is designed for listeners who demand skepticism, but appreciate wonder. WNYC Studios is the producer of other leading podcasts including Freakonomics Radio, Death, Sex & Money, On the Media and many more.",
"airtime": "SUN 12am-1am, SAT 2pm-3pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/radiolab1400.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/radiolab/",
"meta": {
"site": "science",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/radiolab",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radiolab/id152249110?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/RadioLab-p68032/",
"rss": "https://feeds.wnyc.org/radiolab"
}
},
"reveal": {
"id": "reveal",
"title": "Reveal",
"info": "Created by The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX, Reveal is public radios first one-hour weekly radio show and podcast dedicated to investigative reporting. Credible, fact based and without a partisan agenda, Reveal combines the power and artistry of driveway moment storytelling with data-rich reporting on critically important issues. The result is stories that inform and inspire, arming our listeners with information to right injustices, hold the powerful accountable and improve lives.Reveal is hosted by Al Letson and showcases the award-winning work of CIR and newsrooms large and small across the nation. In a radio and podcast market crowded with choices, Reveal focuses on important and often surprising stories that illuminate the world for our listeners.",
"airtime": "SAT 4pm-5pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/reveal300px.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.revealnews.org/episodes/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/reveal",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/reveal/id886009669",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Reveal-p679597/",
"rss": "http://feeds.revealradio.org/revealpodcast"
}
},
"rightnowish": {
"id": "rightnowish",
"title": "Rightnowish",
"tagline": "Art is where you find it",
"info": "Rightnowish digs into life in the Bay Area right now… ish. Journalist Pendarvis Harshaw takes us to galleries painted on the sides of liquor stores in West Oakland. We'll dance in warehouses in the Bayview, make smoothies with kids in South Berkeley, and listen to classical music in a 1984 Cutlass Supreme in Richmond. Every week, Pen talks to movers and shakers about how the Bay Area shapes what they create, and how they shape the place we call home.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Rightnowish-Podcast-Tile-500x500-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Rightnowish with Pendarvis Harshaw",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/rightnowish",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 16
},
"link": "/podcasts/rightnowish",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/721590300/rightnowish",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/arts/programs/rightnowish/feed/podcast",
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rightnowish/id1482187648",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/rightnowish",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkMxMjU5MTY3NDc4",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/7kEJuafTzTVan7B78ttz1I"
}
},
"science-friday": {
"id": "science-friday",
"title": "Science Friday",
"info": "Science Friday is a weekly science talk show, broadcast live over public radio stations nationwide. Each week, the show focuses on science topics that are in the news and tries to bring an educated, balanced discussion to bear on the scientific issues at hand. Panels of expert guests join host Ira Flatow, a veteran science journalist, to discuss science and to take questions from listeners during the call-in portion of the program.",
"airtime": "FRI 11am-1pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Science-Friday-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/science-friday",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/science-friday",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=73329284&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Science-Friday-p394/",
"rss": "http://feeds.wnyc.org/science-friday"
}
},
"snap-judgment": {
"id": "snap-judgment",
"title": "Snap Judgment",
"tagline": "Real stories with killer beats",
"info": "The Snap Judgment radio show and podcast mixes real stories with killer beats to produce cinematic, dramatic radio. Snap's musical brand of storytelling dares listeners to see the world through the eyes of another. This is storytelling... with a BEAT!! Snap first aired on public radio stations nationwide in July 2010. Today, Snap Judgment airs on over 450 public radio stations and is brought to the airwaves by KQED & PRX.",
"airtime": "SAT 1pm-2pm, 9pm-10pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Snap-Judgment-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://snapjudgment.org",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 4
},
"link": "https://snapjudgment.org",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/snap-judgment/id283657561",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/449018144/snap-judgment",
"stitcher": "https://www.pandora.com/podcast/snap-judgment/PC:241?source=stitcher-sunset",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/3Cct7ZWmxHNAtLgBTqjC5v",
"rss": "https://snap.feed.snapjudgment.org/"
}
},
"soldout": {
"id": "soldout",
"title": "SOLD OUT: Rethinking Housing in America",
"tagline": "A new future for housing",
"info": "Sold Out: Rethinking Housing in America",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Sold-Out-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Sold Out: Rethinking Housing in America",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/soldout",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 13
},
"link": "/podcasts/soldout",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/911586047/s-o-l-d-o-u-t-a-new-future-for-housing",
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/introducing-sold-out-rethinking-housing-in-america/id1531354937",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/soldout",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/38dTBSk2ISFoPiyYNoKn1X",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/sold-out-rethinking-housing-in-america",
"tunein": "https://tunein.com/radio/SOLD-OUT-Rethinking-Housing-in-America-p1365871/",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vc29sZG91dA"
}
},
"spooked": {
"id": "spooked",
"title": "Spooked",
"tagline": "True-life supernatural stories",
"info": "",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Spooked-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://spookedpodcast.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 7
},
"link": "https://spookedpodcast.org/",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spooked/id1279361017",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/549547848/snap-judgment-presents-spooked",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/76571Rfl3m7PLJQZKQIGCT",
"rss": "https://feeds.simplecast.com/TBotaapn"
}
},
"tech-nation": {
"id": "tech-nation",
"title": "Tech Nation Radio Podcast",
"info": "Tech Nation is a weekly public radio program, hosted by Dr. Moira Gunn. Founded in 1993, it has grown from a simple interview show to a multi-faceted production, featuring conversations with noted technology and science leaders, and a weekly science and technology-related commentary.",
"airtime": "FRI 10pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Tech-Nation-Radio-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://technation.podomatic.com/",
"meta": {
"site": "science",
"source": "Tech Nation Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/tech-nation",
"subscribe": {
"rss": "https://technation.podomatic.com/rss2.xml"
}
},
"ted-radio-hour": {
"id": "ted-radio-hour",
"title": "TED Radio Hour",
"info": "The TED Radio Hour is a journey through fascinating ideas, astonishing inventions, fresh approaches to old problems, and new ways to think and create.",
"airtime": "SUN 3pm-4pm, SAT 10pm-11pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/tedRadioHour.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/ted-radio-hour/?showDate=2018-06-22",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/ted-radio-hour",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/8vsS",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=523121474&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/TED-Radio-Hour-p418021/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510298/podcast.xml"
}
},
"thebay": {
"id": "thebay",
"title": "The Bay",
"tagline": "Local news to keep you rooted",
"info": "Host Devin Katayama walks you through the biggest story of the day with reporters and newsmakers.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Bay-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Bay",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/thebay",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 2
},
"link": "/podcasts/thebay",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bay/id1350043452",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM4MjU5Nzg2MzI3",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/586725995/the-bay",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-bay",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/4BIKBKIujizLHlIlBNaAqQ",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC8259786327"
}
},
"thelatest": {
"id": "thelatest",
"title": "The Latest",
"tagline": "Trusted local news in real time",
"info": "",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/The-Latest-2025-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Latest",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/thelatest",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 6
},
"link": "/thelatest",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-latest-from-kqed/id1197721799",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/1257949365/the-latest-from-k-q-e-d",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/5KIIXMgM9GTi5AepwOYvIZ?si=bd3053fec7244dba",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC9137121918"
}
},
"theleap": {
"id": "theleap",
"title": "The Leap",
"tagline": "What if you closed your eyes, and jumped?",
"info": "Stories about people making dramatic, risky changes, told by award-winning public radio reporter Judy Campbell.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Leap-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Leap",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/theleap",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 17
},
"link": "/podcasts/theleap",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-leap/id1046668171",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM0NTcwODQ2MjY2",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/447248267/the-leap",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-leap",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/3sSlVHHzU0ytLwuGs1SD1U",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/programs/the-leap/feed/podcast"
}
},
"the-moth-radio-hour": {
"id": "the-moth-radio-hour",
"title": "The Moth Radio Hour",
"info": "Since its launch in 1997, The Moth has presented thousands of true stories, told live and without notes, to standing-room-only crowds worldwide. Moth storytellers stand alone, under a spotlight, with only a microphone and a roomful of strangers. The storyteller and the audience embark on a high-wire act of shared experience which is both terrifying and exhilarating. Since 2008, The Moth podcast has featured many of our favorite stories told live on Moth stages around the country. For information on all of our programs and live events, visit themoth.org.",
"airtime": "SAT 8pm-9pm and SUN 11am-12pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/theMoth.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://themoth.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "prx"
},
"link": "/radio/program/the-moth-radio-hour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-moth-podcast/id275699983?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/The-Moth-p273888/",
"rss": "http://feeds.themoth.org/themothpodcast"
}
},
"the-new-yorker-radio-hour": {
"id": "the-new-yorker-radio-hour",
"title": "The New Yorker Radio Hour",
"info": "The New Yorker Radio Hour is a weekly program presented by the magazine's editor, David Remnick, and produced by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker. Each episode features a diverse mix of interviews, profiles, storytelling, and an occasional burst of humor inspired by the magazine, and shaped by its writers, artists, and editors. This isn't a radio version of a magazine, but something all its own, reflecting the rich possibilities of audio storytelling and conversation. Theme music for the show was composed and performed by Merrill Garbus of tUnE-YArDs.",
"airtime": "SAT 10am-11am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-New-Yorker-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/tnyradiohour",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/the-new-yorker-radio-hour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1050430296",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/New-Yorker-Radio-Hour-p803804/",
"rss": "https://feeds.feedburner.com/newyorkerradiohour"
}
},
"the-sam-sanders-show": {
"id": "the-sam-sanders-show",
"title": "The Sam Sanders Show",
"info": "One of public radio's most dynamic voices, Sam Sanders helped launch The NPR Politics Podcast and hosted NPR's hit show It's Been A Minute. Now, the award-winning host returns with something brand new, The Sam Sanders Show. Every week, Sam Sanders and friends dig into the culture that shapes our lives: what's driving the biggest trends, how artists really think, and even the memes you can't stop scrolling past. Sam is beloved for his way of unpacking the world and bringing you up close to fresh currents and engaging conversations. The Sam Sanders Show is smart, funny and always a good time.",
"airtime": "FRI 12-1pm AND SAT 11am-12pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/The-Sam-Sanders-Show-Podcast-Tile-400x400-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.kcrw.com/shows/the-sam-sanders-show/latest",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "KCRW"
},
"link": "https://www.kcrw.com/shows/the-sam-sanders-show/latest",
"subscribe": {
"rss": "https://feed.cdnstream1.com/zjb/feed/download/ac/28/59/ac28594c-e1d0-4231-8728-61865cdc80e8.xml"
}
},
"the-splendid-table": {
"id": "the-splendid-table",
"title": "The Splendid Table",
"info": "\u003cem>The Splendid Table\u003c/em> hosts our nation's conversations about cooking, sustainability and food culture.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Splendid-Table-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.splendidtable.org/",
"airtime": "SUN 10-11 pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/the-splendid-table"
},
"this-american-life": {
"id": "this-american-life",
"title": "This American Life",
"info": "This American Life is a weekly public radio show, heard by 2.2 million people on more than 500 stations. Another 2.5 million people download the weekly podcast. It is hosted by Ira Glass, produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media, delivered to stations by PRX The Public Radio Exchange, and has won all of the major broadcasting awards.",
"airtime": "SAT 12pm-1pm, 7pm-8pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/thisAmericanLife.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.thisamericanlife.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "wbez"
},
"link": "/radio/program/this-american-life",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=201671138&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"rss": "https://www.thisamericanlife.org/podcast/rss.xml"
}
},
"tinydeskradio": {
"id": "tinydeskradio",
"title": "Tiny Desk Radio",
"info": "We're bringing the best of Tiny Desk to the airwaves, only on public radio.",
"airtime": "SUN 8pm and SAT 9pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/300x300-For-Member-Station-Logo-Tiny-Desk-Radio-@2x.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/series/g-s1-52030/tiny-desk-radio",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/tinydeskradio",
"subscribe": {
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/g-s1-52030/rss.xml"
}
},
"wait-wait-dont-tell-me": {
"id": "wait-wait-dont-tell-me",
"title": "Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!",
"info": "Peter Sagal and Bill Kurtis host the weekly NPR News quiz show alongside some of the best and brightest news and entertainment personalities.",
"airtime": "SUN 10am-11am, SAT 11am-12pm, SAT 6pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Wait-Wait-Podcast-Tile-300x300-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/wait-wait-dont-tell-me/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/wait-wait-dont-tell-me",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/Xogv",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=121493804&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Wait-Wait-Dont-Tell-Me-p46/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/344098539/podcast.xml"
}
},
"weekend-edition-saturday": {
"id": "weekend-edition-saturday",
"title": "Weekend Edition Saturday",
"info": "Weekend Edition Saturday wraps up the week's news and offers a mix of analysis and features on a wide range of topics, including arts, sports, entertainment, and human interest stories. The two-hour program is hosted by NPR's Peabody Award-winning Scott Simon.",
"airtime": "SAT 5am-10am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Weekend-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/weekend-edition-saturday/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/weekend-edition-saturday"
},
"weekend-edition-sunday": {
"id": "weekend-edition-sunday",
"title": "Weekend Edition Sunday",
"info": "Weekend Edition Sunday features interviews with newsmakers, artists, scientists, politicians, musicians, writers, theologians and historians. The program has covered news events from Nelson Mandela's 1990 release from a South African prison to the capture of Saddam Hussein.",
"airtime": "SUN 5am-10am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Weekend-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/weekend-edition-sunday/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/weekend-edition-sunday"
}
},
"racesReducer": {},
"racesGenElectionReducer": {},
"radioSchedulesReducer": {},
"listsReducer": {
"posts/news?tag=rideshare": {
"isFetching": false,
"latestQuery": {
"from": 0,
"postsToRender": 9
},
"tag": null,
"vitalsOnly": true,
"totalRequested": 9,
"isLoading": false,
"isLoadingMore": true,
"total": {
"value": 18,
"relation": "eq"
},
"items": [
"news_12065918",
"news_12059952",
"news_12057798",
"news_12002988",
"news_12001637",
"news_11990750",
"news_11961382",
"news_11944344",
"news_11943454"
]
}
},
"recallGuideReducer": {
"intros": {},
"policy": {},
"candidates": {}
},
"savedArticleReducer": {
"articles": [],
"status": {}
},
"pfsSessionReducer": {},
"subscriptionsReducer": {},
"termsReducer": {
"about": {
"name": "About",
"type": "terms",
"id": "about",
"slug": "about",
"link": "/about",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"arts": {
"name": "Arts & Culture",
"grouping": [
"arts",
"pop",
"trulyca"
],
"description": "KQED Arts provides daily in-depth coverage of the Bay Area's music, art, film, performing arts, literature and arts news, as well as cultural commentary and criticism.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "arts",
"slug": "arts",
"link": "/arts",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"artschool": {
"name": "Art School",
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "artschool",
"slug": "artschool",
"link": "/artschool",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"bayareabites": {
"name": "KQED food",
"grouping": [
"food",
"bayareabites",
"checkplease"
],
"parent": "food",
"type": "terms",
"id": "bayareabites",
"slug": "bayareabites",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"bayareahiphop": {
"name": "Bay Area Hiphop",
"type": "terms",
"id": "bayareahiphop",
"slug": "bayareahiphop",
"link": "/bayareahiphop",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"campaign21": {
"name": "Campaign 21",
"type": "terms",
"id": "campaign21",
"slug": "campaign21",
"link": "/campaign21",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"checkplease": {
"name": "KQED food",
"grouping": [
"food",
"bayareabites",
"checkplease"
],
"parent": "food",
"type": "terms",
"id": "checkplease",
"slug": "checkplease",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"education": {
"name": "Education",
"grouping": [
"education"
],
"type": "terms",
"id": "education",
"slug": "education",
"link": "/education",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"elections": {
"name": "Elections",
"type": "terms",
"id": "elections",
"slug": "elections",
"link": "/elections",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"events": {
"name": "Events",
"type": "terms",
"id": "events",
"slug": "events",
"link": "/events",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"event": {
"name": "Event",
"alias": "events",
"type": "terms",
"id": "event",
"slug": "event",
"link": "/event",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"filmschoolshorts": {
"name": "Film School Shorts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "filmschoolshorts",
"slug": "filmschoolshorts",
"link": "/filmschoolshorts",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"food": {
"name": "KQED food",
"grouping": [
"food",
"bayareabites",
"checkplease"
],
"type": "terms",
"id": "food",
"slug": "food",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"forum": {
"name": "Forum",
"relatedContentQuery": "posts/forum?",
"parent": "news",
"type": "terms",
"id": "forum",
"slug": "forum",
"link": "/forum",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"futureofyou": {
"name": "Future of You",
"grouping": [
"science",
"futureofyou"
],
"parent": "science",
"type": "terms",
"id": "futureofyou",
"slug": "futureofyou",
"link": "/futureofyou",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"jpepinheart": {
"name": "KQED food",
"relatedContentQuery": "posts/food,bayareabites,checkplease",
"parent": "food",
"type": "terms",
"id": "jpepinheart",
"slug": "jpepinheart",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"liveblog": {
"name": "Live Blog",
"type": "terms",
"id": "liveblog",
"slug": "liveblog",
"link": "/liveblog",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"livetv": {
"name": "Live TV",
"parent": "tv",
"type": "terms",
"id": "livetv",
"slug": "livetv",
"link": "/livetv",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"lowdown": {
"name": "The Lowdown",
"relatedContentQuery": "posts/lowdown?",
"parent": "news",
"type": "terms",
"id": "lowdown",
"slug": "lowdown",
"link": "/lowdown",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"mindshift": {
"name": "Mindshift",
"parent": "news",
"description": "MindShift explores the future of education by highlighting the innovative – and sometimes counterintuitive – ways educators and parents are helping all children succeed.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "mindshift",
"slug": "mindshift",
"link": "/mindshift",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"news": {
"name": "News",
"grouping": [
"news",
"forum"
],
"type": "terms",
"id": "news",
"slug": "news",
"link": "/news",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"perspectives": {
"name": "Perspectives",
"parent": "radio",
"type": "terms",
"id": "perspectives",
"slug": "perspectives",
"link": "/perspectives",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"podcasts": {
"name": "Podcasts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "podcasts",
"slug": "podcasts",
"link": "/podcasts",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"pop": {
"name": "Pop",
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "pop",
"slug": "pop",
"link": "/pop",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"pressroom": {
"name": "Pressroom",
"type": "terms",
"id": "pressroom",
"slug": "pressroom",
"link": "/pressroom",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"quest": {
"name": "Quest",
"parent": "science",
"type": "terms",
"id": "quest",
"slug": "quest",
"link": "/quest",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"radio": {
"name": "Radio",
"grouping": [
"forum",
"perspectives"
],
"description": "Listen to KQED Public Radio – home of Forum and The California Report – on 88.5 FM in San Francisco, 89.3 FM in Sacramento, 88.3 FM in Santa Rosa and 88.1 FM in Martinez.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "radio",
"slug": "radio",
"link": "/radio",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"root": {
"name": "KQED",
"image": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"imageWidth": 1200,
"imageHeight": 630,
"headData": {
"title": "KQED | News, Radio, Podcasts, TV | Public Media for Northern California",
"description": "KQED provides public radio, television, and independent reporting on issues that matter to the Bay Area. We’re the NPR and PBS member station for Northern California."
},
"type": "terms",
"id": "root",
"slug": "root",
"link": "/root",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"science": {
"name": "Science",
"grouping": [
"science",
"futureofyou"
],
"description": "KQED Science brings you award-winning science and environment coverage from the Bay Area and beyond.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "science",
"slug": "science",
"link": "/science",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"stateofhealth": {
"name": "State of Health",
"parent": "science",
"type": "terms",
"id": "stateofhealth",
"slug": "stateofhealth",
"link": "/stateofhealth",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"support": {
"name": "Support",
"type": "terms",
"id": "support",
"slug": "support",
"link": "/support",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"thedolist": {
"name": "The Do List",
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "thedolist",
"slug": "thedolist",
"link": "/thedolist",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"trulyca": {
"name": "Truly CA",
"grouping": [
"arts",
"pop",
"trulyca"
],
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "trulyca",
"slug": "trulyca",
"link": "/trulyca",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"tv": {
"name": "TV",
"type": "terms",
"id": "tv",
"slug": "tv",
"link": "/tv",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"voterguide": {
"name": "Voter Guide",
"parent": "elections",
"alias": "elections",
"type": "terms",
"id": "voterguide",
"slug": "voterguide",
"link": "/voterguide",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"guiaelectoral": {
"name": "Guia Electoral",
"parent": "elections",
"alias": "elections",
"type": "terms",
"id": "guiaelectoral",
"slug": "guiaelectoral",
"link": "/guiaelectoral",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"news_25675": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_25675",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "25675",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "rideshare",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "rideshare Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null,
"imageData": {
"ogImageSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"width": 1200,
"height": 630
},
"twImageSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
},
"twitterCard": "summary_large_image"
}
},
"ttid": 25692,
"slug": "rideshare",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/rideshare"
},
"source_news_12059952": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_news_12059952",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "The California Report",
"link": "https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/tcrarchive/",
"isLoading": false
},
"source_news_12002988": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "source_news_12002988",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"name": "CalMatters",
"link": "https://calmatters.org/economy/2024/09/gig-work-california-prop-22-enforcement/",
"isLoading": false
},
"news_28250": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_28250",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "28250",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Local",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Local Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 28267,
"slug": "local",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/local"
},
"news_8": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_8",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "8",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "News",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "News Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 8,
"slug": "news",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/news"
},
"news_248": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_248",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "248",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Technology",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Technology Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 256,
"slug": "technology",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/technology"
},
"news_1397": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_1397",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "1397",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Transportation",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Transportation Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 1409,
"slug": "transportation",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/transportation"
},
"news_34043": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_34043",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "34043",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "autonomous vehicles",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "autonomous vehicles Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 34060,
"slug": "autonomous-vehicles",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/autonomous-vehicles"
},
"news_33010": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33010",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33010",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "driverless taxis",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "driverless taxis Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33027,
"slug": "driverless-taxis",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/driverless-taxis"
},
"news_4524": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_4524",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "4524",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Lyft",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Lyft Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 4543,
"slug": "lyft",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/lyft"
},
"news_17660": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_17660",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "17660",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Market Street",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Market Street Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 17694,
"slug": "market-street",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/market-street"
},
"news_5535": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_5535",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "5535",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "pedestrian safety",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "pedestrian safety Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 5558,
"slug": "pedestrian-safety",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/pedestrian-safety"
},
"news_22456": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_22456",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "22456",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "public safety",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "public safety Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 22473,
"slug": "public-safety",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/public-safety"
},
"news_23667": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_23667",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "23667",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "ride-hailing",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "ride-hailing Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 23684,
"slug": "ride-hailing",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/ride-hailing"
},
"news_4756": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_4756",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "4756",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "ride-sharing",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "ride-sharing Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 4775,
"slug": "ride-sharing",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/ride-sharing"
},
"news_4658": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_4658",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "4658",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "ridesharing",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "ridesharing Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 4677,
"slug": "ridesharing",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/ridesharing"
},
"news_33028": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33028",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33028",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "robotaxis",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "robotaxis Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33045,
"slug": "robotaxis",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/robotaxis"
},
"news_38": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_38",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "38",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "San Francisco",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "San Francisco Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 58,
"slug": "san-francisco",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/san-francisco"
},
"news_92": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_92",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "92",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "traffic",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "traffic Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 95,
"slug": "traffic",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/traffic"
},
"news_20517": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_20517",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "20517",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "transportation",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "transportation Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 20534,
"slug": "transportation",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/transportation"
},
"news_4523": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_4523",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "4523",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Uber",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Uber Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 4542,
"slug": "uber",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/uber"
},
"news_20576": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_20576",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "20576",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Waymo",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Waymo Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 20593,
"slug": "waymo",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/waymo"
},
"news_33733": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33733",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33733",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "News",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "interest",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "News Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33750,
"slug": "news",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/interest/news"
},
"news_33729": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33729",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33729",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "San Francisco",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "interest",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "San Francisco Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33746,
"slug": "san-francisco",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/interest/san-francisco"
},
"news_33732": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33732",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33732",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Technology",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "interest",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Technology Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33749,
"slug": "technology",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/interest/technology"
},
"news_72": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_72",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "72",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2014/10/TCR-2-Logo-Web-Banners-03.png",
"name": "The California Report",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "program",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "The California Report Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 6969,
"slug": "the-california-report",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/program/the-california-report"
},
"news_33520": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33520",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33520",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Podcast",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Podcast Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33537,
"slug": "podcast",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/podcast"
},
"news_34018": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_34018",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "34018",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "tcr",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "tcr Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 34035,
"slug": "tcr",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/tcr"
},
"news_34420": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_34420",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "34420",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"name": "audit",
"slug": "audit",
"taxonomy": "tag",
"description": null,
"featImg": null,
"headData": {
"title": "audit | KQED News",
"description": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogDescription": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"twDescription": null,
"twImgId": null
},
"ttid": 34437,
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/audit"
},
"news_33638": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33638",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33638",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "california colleges",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "california colleges Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33655,
"slug": "california-colleges",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/california-colleges"
},
"news_35985": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_35985",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "35985",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"name": "student housing",
"slug": "student-housing",
"taxonomy": "tag",
"description": null,
"featImg": null,
"headData": {
"title": "student housing | KQED News",
"description": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogDescription": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"twDescription": null,
"twImgId": null
},
"ttid": 36002,
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/student-housing"
},
"news_21998": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_21998",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "21998",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "TCRAM",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "TCRAM Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 22015,
"slug": "tcram",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/tcram"
},
"news_21268": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_21268",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "21268",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "tcrarchive",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "tcrarchive Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 21285,
"slug": "tcrarchive",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/tcrarchive"
},
"news_31795": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_31795",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "31795",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "California",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "California Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 31812,
"slug": "california",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/california"
},
"news_1758": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_1758",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "1758",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Economy",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": "Full coverage of the economy",
"title": "Economy Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 2648,
"slug": "economy",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/economy"
},
"news_34551": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_34551",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "34551",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"name": "Labor",
"slug": "labor",
"taxonomy": "category",
"description": "We examine worker safety, workplace regulation, employment trends and union organizing.",
"featImg": null,
"headData": {
"title": "Labor | KQED News",
"description": "We examine worker safety, workplace regulation, employment trends and union organizing.",
"ogTitle": null,
"ogDescription": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"twDescription": null,
"twImgId": null
},
"ttid": 34568,
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/labor"
},
"news_13": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_13",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "13",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"name": "Politics",
"slug": "politics",
"taxonomy": "category",
"description": null,
"featImg": null,
"headData": {
"title": "Politics | KQED News",
"description": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogDescription": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"twDescription": null,
"twImgId": null
},
"ttid": 13,
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/politics"
},
"news_18538": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_18538",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "18538",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "California",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "California Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 31,
"slug": "california",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/california"
},
"news_27626": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_27626",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "27626",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "featured-news",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "featured-news Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 27643,
"slug": "featured-news",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/featured-news"
},
"news_16": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_16",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "16",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Gavin Newsom",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Gavin Newsom Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 16,
"slug": "gavin-newsom",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/gavin-newsom"
},
"news_19904": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_19904",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "19904",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"name": "Labor",
"slug": "labor",
"taxonomy": "tag",
"description": null,
"featImg": null,
"headData": {
"title": "Labor | KQED News",
"description": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogDescription": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"twDescription": null,
"twImgId": null
},
"ttid": 19921,
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/labor"
},
"news_32652": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_32652",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "32652",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"name": "labor actions",
"slug": "labor-actions",
"taxonomy": "tag",
"description": null,
"featImg": null,
"headData": {
"title": "labor actions | KQED News",
"description": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogDescription": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"twDescription": null,
"twImgId": null,
"metaRobotsNoIndex": "noindex"
},
"ttid": 32669,
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/labor-actions"
},
"news_33738": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33738",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33738",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "California",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "interest",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "California Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33755,
"slug": "california",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/interest/california"
},
"news_34164": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_34164",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "34164",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"name": "gig companies",
"slug": "gig-companies",
"taxonomy": "tag",
"description": null,
"featImg": null,
"headData": {
"title": "gig companies Archives | KQED News",
"description": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogDescription": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"twDescription": null,
"twImgId": null
},
"ttid": 34181,
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/gig-companies"
},
"news_17994": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_17994",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "17994",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "gig economy",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "gig economy Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 18028,
"slug": "gig-economy",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/gig-economy"
},
"news_26585": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_26585",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "26585",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "gig workers",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "gig workers Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 26602,
"slug": "gig-workers",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/gig-workers"
},
"news_25039": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_25039",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "25039",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Instacart",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Instacart Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 25056,
"slug": "instacart",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/instacart"
},
"news_28695": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_28695",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "28695",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "proposition 22",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "proposition 22 Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 28712,
"slug": "proposition-22",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/proposition-22"
},
"news_1386": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_1386",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "1386",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Bay Area",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Bay Area Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 1398,
"slug": "bay-area",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/bay-area"
},
"news_33009": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33009",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33009",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "cruise",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "cruise Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33026,
"slug": "cruise",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/cruise"
},
"news_2141": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_2141",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "2141",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "minimum wage",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "minimum wage Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 2156,
"slug": "minimum-wage",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/minimum-wage"
},
"news_253": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_253",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "253",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "NPR",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "affiliate",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": "KQED is the NPR station for the Bay Area, providing award-winning news, programming, and community engagement.",
"title": "NPR Archives - Get the Latest News and Reports from California | KQED",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 7083,
"slug": "npr",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/affiliate/npr"
},
"news_1631": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_1631",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "1631",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"name": "Technology",
"slug": "technology",
"taxonomy": "tag",
"description": null,
"featImg": null,
"headData": {
"title": "Technology | KQED News",
"description": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogDescription": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"twDescription": null,
"twImgId": null
},
"ttid": 1643,
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/technology"
},
"news_18481": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_18481",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "18481",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "CALmatters",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "affiliate",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "CALmatters Archives | KQED Arts",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 18515,
"slug": "calmatters",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/affiliate/calmatters"
}
},
"userAgentReducer": {
"userAgent": "Mozilla/5.0 AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko; compatible; ClaudeBot/1.0; +claudebot@anthropic.com)",
"isBot": true
},
"userPermissionsReducer": {
"wpLoggedIn": false
},
"localStorageReducer": {},
"browserHistoryReducer": [],
"eventsReducer": {},
"fssReducer": {},
"tvDailyScheduleReducer": {},
"tvWeeklyScheduleReducer": {},
"tvPrimetimeScheduleReducer": {},
"tvMonthlyScheduleReducer": {},
"userAccountReducer": {
"user": {
"email": null,
"emailStatus": "EMAIL_UNVALIDATED",
"loggedStatus": "LOGGED_OUT",
"loggingChecked": false,
"articles": [],
"firstName": null,
"lastName": null,
"phoneNumber": null,
"fetchingMembership": false,
"membershipError": false,
"memberships": [
{
"id": null,
"startDate": null,
"firstName": null,
"lastName": null,
"familyNumber": null,
"memberNumber": null,
"memberSince": null,
"expirationDate": null,
"pfsEligible": false,
"isSustaining": false,
"membershipLevel": "Prospect",
"membershipStatus": "Non Member",
"lastGiftDate": null,
"renewalDate": null,
"lastDonationAmount": null
}
]
},
"authModal": {
"isOpen": false,
"view": "LANDING_VIEW"
},
"error": null
},
"youthMediaReducer": {},
"checkPleaseReducer": {
"filterData": {},
"restaurantData": []
},
"location": {
"pathname": "/news/tag/rideshare",
"previousPathname": "/"
}
}
