Dasher Lawsuit

BreakingNews: Washington D.C. sues Doordash for pocketing workers’ tips. That’s what we’ve been saying! Join our lawsuits against DoorDash and spread the word. #StrengthInNumbers. Follow @DasherLawsuit on Twitter for more updates. https://twitter.com/DasherLawsuit

In 2017, a class action lawsuit alleged that DoorDash drivers are misclassified as independent contactors. As part of the settlement, DoorDash agreed to pay delivery drivers $3.5 million, and another $1.5 million if the company went public or doubled its valuation. Additional lawsuits were filed against DoorDash in 2018 and 2019, on behalf of Dashers not covered by the previous settlement.

Our California employment attorneys with over 50 years of collective experience litigating under California employment law know how to fight for employees’ rights and get them the money they deserve. We’ve recovered tens of millions of dollars for California employees and represent individuals as well as class actions in virtually every area of California employment and labor laws.

In California the law on tips is clear: voluntary tips left for an employee belong to the employee, not the employer. A lawsuit has been filed against DoorDash for allegedly skimming tips from delivery drivers. According to the lawsuit, in 2017 DoorDash started using customer tips to pay drivers’ base rate, rather than passing the entire tip on to the driver as required by law.

Many California employees of DoorDash who were formerly independent contractors may be entitled to employee status, entitling them to reimbursement for driving expenses (58 per mile); minimum pay of $12 per hour; and receiving all incentive pay in a timely manner. Dashers with employee status would also be entitled to other protections, such as paid rest breaks and transparent payment of tips.

In a letter to Governor Jerry Brown, DoorDash wrote that requiring it to reclassify its Dashers as employees would threaten the livelihoods of millions of working Californians.

In 2018, the California Supreme Court made it much more difficult for companies to classify workers as independent contractors and to deprive them all of the protections and benefits of being an employee. All California workers are presumed to be employees unless the employer can prove, among other things, that its workers are free from company control when performing their jobs.

Many DoorDash driver lawsuits have been filed seeking up to $25,000 per Dasher. DoorDash is accused of misclassifying its workers as independent contractors to avoid giving them the protections of California employment law. Dashers have also reported that DoorDash improperly withheld incentive pay for deliveries during peak hours.

Dashers have recently filed several Doordash lawsuits accusing the company of failing to meet requirements under California labor law to reimburse delivery drivers for gas and mileage; to pass on all tips left by customers; to pay at least $12 per hour; and to compensate all hours worked, including wait time.