DoorDash shared Thursday that, along with industry stakeholders including UberEats and Grubhub, it has filed litigation against New York City to challenge the City Council’s recent earnings standard change for delivery workers. The new standard ensures these workers will work for $17.96 per hour with plans to increase that rate to $19.96 by 2025.
DoorDash and Grubhub filed their lawsuit jointly, while Uber filed a separate suit.
DoorDash and Grubhub alleged that the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, in charge of setting the minimum pay rate, launched a survey to understand the industry in a subjective way, failing to accurately examine the industry.
“Rather than identifying a comprehensive group of delivery workers to inform its findings, DCWP simply drew from the most convenient sample. Rather than presenting its questionnaire thoughtfully and without bias, DCWP used leading questions to push workers to respond in ways the agency wanted. And rather than rigorously analyzing the data, DCWP chose to selectively use the information that it had collected to confirm what it wanted to find,” wrote DoorDash in a statement.
The food delivery company added that the new standard fails to consider industry operations. For example, companies that only facilitate grocery deliveries are exempt from the rule, meaning a worker can be subject to different legal standards for the same order depending on the platform, according to the app.
In an earlier statement, DoorDash warned of the potential dangers of the earnings standard.
“The impacts will be felt throughout the city: Dashers may see fewer opportunities to work when they choose, customers may be priced out of orders, and jobs at local restaurants may be lost—including many in low-income communities and communities of color,” said the company.
Related: DoorDash Announces Restaurant Cohorts; DoorDash to Accept SNAP/EBT Payment