Two residents of the city of Long Beach who work for Doordash and Postmates share their thoughts on proposition 22 and the effects that it has brought to their income.
Proposition 22 (prop 22) was voted on and passed in last year’s November election. The changes came into effect on January 1. Prop 22 allows app-based delivery companies to classify their workers as contractors instead of employees. Being classified as a contractor takes away the obligation of companies like DoorDash, Lyft, and others to pay benefits such as worker’s compensation and health insurance in California.
“I think it is still a good law because even though it can be hard at times picking up orders I would say most of the time I still receive a good amount of money that I get to keep for myself and help out my family who live in Long Beach as rent can be high at times,” said Arturo Vega, a Postmates contractor.
Vega and other drivers share the same sentiment of using app-based delivery jobs to help pay for everyday needs such as bills, school supplies or personal utilities. These needs have been difficult to afford because of the job losses that have resulted during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I went full-time to Long Beach City College when things were in person. I had to be in class and now I’m either studying or in a Zoom lecture. I needed more money to help out my family with rent so my best option for a job was Postmates. I get to make my own schedule so I do it whenever I want,” said Vega.
Since prop 22 was passed, some food delivery drivers in the Long Beach area did not know what type of change they would start seeing in their pay. With many expecting their pay to decrease because of drivers being considered independent contractors instead of employees.
“Before Prop 22, our pay for each order averaged from three to six dollars and it’s still the same in my opinion. I mainly rely on people who tip but if I would say what is different I’ve seen, would be the Doordash adjustment where they give you a certain amount of money depending on how many hours you work,” said Crystal Martinez a DoorDash contractor.
As part of Prop 22 companies such as Postmates, Doordash and Uber Eats offer their drivers guaranteed earnings which is what Martinez is referring to.
This means that if an app-based driver doesn’t reach the earnings guaranteed by this proposition the company the driver works for will top their earnings. This ensures contractors receive money even if they don’t reach the goal placed by their company. The amount of extra earnings that the driver receives depends on the miles they circulated in a two-week period.
“I actually voted in favor of it because in the emails that I would receive about it from Postmates it said that we would have guaranteed earnings so to me it seemed like the right move,” said Vega.
“I voted against it because being an independent contractor means that if anything were to happen it would fully be up to me, which I find difficult since I only deliver the food. Not only do we put in our time and effort but jobs like these make us use our car, gas, and car maintenance,” said Martinez.
In order to encourage residents to vote yes for the proposition, these companies put in effort to persuade people it was the right move by sending frequent email to users and drivers. These frequent emails highlighted two main benefits for passing prop 22 which would be driver’s benefits with earnings and occupational accident insurance for injuries that occur while delivering food.
Vega and Martinez feel the emails sent out only highlighted the positive aspects instead of an overall overview of the challenges that it could bring once the proposition was passed. Overall, being fully informed before voting would’ve been more helpful.