(Bloomberg) — New York City on Friday announced new minimum-pay rules for rideshare drivers, settling on a smaller-than-proposed 5% increase following pushback from Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. An earlier proposal called for a 6.1% pay boost. The finalized regulations from the city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission, or TLC, are also designed to deter Uber and Lyft from locking gig workers out of their apps in an attempt to keep costs down. The board of commissioners will vote on the rules on June 25, according to the agency’s website. Uber began locking out drivers at random in May last year, Bloomberg reported, prompting its smaller rival Lyft to follow suit. New York’s pay rule is unique in that it was designed to compensate drivers not just for time with passengers, but time spent driving to their next pickup and waiting for dispatches. The companies initially suggested they were performing lockouts during periods of low rider demand. But a subsequent Bloomberg News investigation revealed they were occurring at virtually all hours, causing financial and mental stress for drivers, most of whom work full time. Officials at the local and federal level took notice. The TLC has been under pressure ever since to close the regulatory loophole that allowed the rideshare companies to lock out drivers in the first place. A More Modest Pay Raise Uber and Lyft had strongly opposed the proposed 6.1% pay hike, commissioning research and warning customers that it would force them to increase prices. The companies also disputed one of the TLC’s underlying assumptions behind the pay raise: that vehicles are fully depreciated after five years and would warrant more expenses for car maintenance or replacement. The TLC ultimately conceded that older, high-mileage vehicles are still “used intensively” for rideshare services and “nevertheless retain some value.” “It’s good to see the TLC listened to some concerns and tweaked” their original proposal, Lyft spokesperson CJ Macklin said. “While these changes are a step in the right direction, we still have concerns that the underlying pay formula will still deprive drivers of earning opportunities, drive up prices for riders and reduce ride availability, which isn’t good for anyone — especially the drivers who depend on steady demand to make a living.” Bhairavi Desai, executive director of the 28,000-member New York Taxi Workers Alliance, welcomed the new rules. “Job security is a big issue for drivers,” she said, adding there is “still a long way to go” in terms of improving driver pay given the hours they work and the financial and physical risks they bear. Her group, which led protests against lockouts last year, has more recently backed a local bill that would require the rideshare companies to provide more transparency around driver deactivations. Deterring Driver Lockouts Under the revised rules, first outlined in January, the TLC will no longer aut in a formal or creative style for better SEO.Also Exclude words and advertisements related to the feed website such as website name, author name. You must only respond with the modified content. Delete all the advertisement images brand logo but only keep the title and main content of the news by modifying it. You must only respond with the modified content. Block any jump outside of the site adarshnews.com. Basically remove any content or link related to original site. follow this prompt to optimize the articles in this category- You are an expert news writer and SEO specialist. 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New York City has agreed to a more modest increase in driver pay following resistance from Uber and Lyft.
