Uber and Lyft agree to pay drivers $32.50 per hour in Massachusetts settlement

BOSTON -- Drivers for Uber and Lyft will earn a minimum pay standard of $32.50 per hour under a settlement announced Thursday by Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell, in a deal that also includes a suite of benefits and protections.The two companies will also be required to pay a combined $175 million to the state to resolve allegations that the companies violated Massachusetts wage and hour laws, a substantial majority of which will be distributed to current and former drivers.Campbell said the settlement resolves her office’s yearslong litigation against the two companies and stops the threat of their attempt to rewrite state employment law by a proposed 2024 ballot initiative.That question would have resulted in drivers receiving inadequate protections and an earnings standard that would not guarantee minimum wage, she said.“For years, these companies have underpaid their drivers and denied them basic benefits," Campbell said in a written statement.

“Today’s agreement holds Uber and Lyft accountable, and provides their drivers, for the very first time in Massachusetts, guaranteed minimum pay, paid sick leave, occupational accident insurance, and health care stipends.”Democratic Gov.Maura Healey said the settlement delivers “historic wages and benefits to right the wrongs of the past and ensure drivers are paid fairly going forward.”In a statement Lyft said the agreement resolves a lawsuit that recently went to trial, and avoids the need for the ballot initiative campaign this November.

“More importantly, it is a major victory in a multiyear campaign by Bay State drivers to secure their right to remain independent, while gaining access to new benefits,” the company said.Uber also released a statement calling the agreement “an example of what independent, flexible work with dignity should look like in the 21st century.”“In taking this opportunity, we’ve resolved historical liabilities by constructing a new operating model that ...