This November, California voters approved Proposition 22, giving on-demand delivery workers in the state access to new benefits and ensuring they can continue to work flexibly through platforms like Postmates. Postmates has long advocated that app-based workers deserve a comprehensive solution that updates yesterday’s labor laws and strengthens the safety net without having to sacrifice their freedom to choose when and how they work. And with tens of millions of Americans unemployed and in need of earning opportunities as the nation continues to recover from the public health pandemic, flexible work has become more vital than ever.
That’s why—just weeks after California voters, social justice organizations, disability advocates, and anti-drunk driving groups stood up in a historic coalition to demand new benefits for our fleet—we are proud that we are starting to deliver.
YES TO HIGHER EARNINGS
Beginning this month, California workers will be able to access a minimum earnings guarantee even higher than the minimum wage. There’s never been a limit to how much money Fleet members can make on our platform, and now those in California will always make at least 20 percent more than the local minimum wage of their pick up location. In addition, couriers will earn thirty cents per mile traveled in a car to complete their deliveries—that way they can more easily cover gas and maintenance expenses.
YES TO HEALTH BENEFITS
Beginning in 2021, California couriers with qualifying plans who complete an average of at least 15 to 25 hours of on the job trips per week, and across the quarter, are eligible to have the cost of their healthcare offset. We’ve always been committed to doing what we can to protect the health and safety of our workers.
- Earlier this year, we announced a Postmates Fleet Relief Fund to help our workers cover medical costs related to COVID-19.
- We were the first on-demand delivery app to unveil a health-savings account to minimize medical expenses.
- We’ve also requested that the California Health and Human Services agency prioritize distributing the vaccine to on-demand delivery workers as they continue to provide essential services to CA communities.
- And through ongoing education campaigns we encourage our entire Fleet to enroll in healthcare made possible by the Affordable Care Act, raising awareness about Open Enrollment season, which ends today. (Sign up right now if you haven’t already!)
But this takes those health protections a step further by ensuring that we cover 50% of a Postmates qualifying healthcare plan, if they work 15 hours of on-job trips per week over a quarter. And it ensures that we cover 100% of a Postmates qualifying healthcare plan if they work 25 hours of on-job trips per week over a quarter. And as always we will continue to ensure app-based workers are plugged into the latest information around healthcare open-enrollment seasons so they can find plans that meet their needs.
YES TO ACCIDENT PROTECTION
We will also ensure that all Fleet members will be automatically covered by an injury protection policy starting December 16. Couriers who are injured in an accident while delivering in California will be able to submit a claim to get financial support for medical expenses and disability payments.
Postmates plans to make it as easy as possible for our California workers to access these new benefits, and we’ll share all the information they need to know what’s now available to them thanks to Prop 22.
YES TO WORKER-LED MOVEMENTS
Labor laws that only classify workers as either traditional W-2 employees or self-employed independent contractors have been outdated for a long time. Even before the pandemic, millions of Americans fell somewhere in between these two rigid categories — and many of these workers are people of color, immigrants and others who have too often been discriminated against in the traditional economy. Fixing the law in California is an incredible step forward in addressing and protecting the modern way we live and work.
We’ve always been proactive about standing up for our communities of workers, merchants, and customers. But Proposition 22 and all the benefits it provides aren’t about us — they’re about our Fleet. The essential workers who deliver through our platform, who have kept the economy moving throughout the pandemic, are the heart and soul of Postmates. They advocated alongside social justice groups for Prop 22 to be passed, working to ensure all on-demand workers in California have the protections they deserve and the flexibility they demand. Now it’s up to us to see it all through.