No on Prop. 22: “I value being an independent contractor. I don’t want to be locked in with them telling me when to work and how to do it. That’s why I oppose Prop. 22.”
Lavelle jackson
POSTMATES WORKER, Rialto
I started doing gig work last year. I was on leave from my regular job in a parts store because I needed to take care of a family member who was sick. Being an independent contractor let me set my own schedule and work around my caretaking responsibilities. But when I weighed it out, I realized I was sometimes spending more money than I was actually making.
Still, gig work is ideal for me when I need that kind of flexibility. I went back to my job in January, but now I’m relying on Postmates again because I had to go on medical leave a few weeks ago.
I know I can’t survive and pay rent off of Postmates. They send you guarantees and bonuses that look good, but don’t really work out that way. Last week, Postmates had a guaranteed $3 per delivery. There’s no way to know if that’s all you’re going to make, and it’s just not worth it if they pay $3 but I have to drive 5 miles to get to the restaurant and another 5 miles to drop it off.
Sometimes they’ll offer incentives, like if you make 40 deliveries in two weeks, you’re guaranteed at least $275 for those deliveries. But Postmates controls the deliveries that go out — so I find myself getting close to the target, and then the delivery offers just stop. They don’t want you to ever make it to that target to get the guaranteed money.
The way they limit your earnings is so brazen. But Postmates knows some people really rely on the app, so some workers will take offers that cost more in mileage than they pay. Sometimes you need cash in your pocket right now, even if you know you’re losing money in the long run.
Postmates lets me set my own schedule, but it doesn’t really allow me to choose what’s worth my time.
When you get an offer, they only give you an estimate of pay, and this frivolous map that shows you a straight line from your location to the restaurant. You can’t tell how long it will take to drive there. There’s not enough information to know what’s really worth it.
As independent contractors, we should be able to set our own rates. If Prop. 22 passes, it will be even easier for companies like Postmates to limit how much we can make. They could give us even less information before we choose whether to accept a job.
Prop. 22 says they would have to pay us a minimum wage for time on deliveries, but also says they could exclude time they consider “fraudulent.” I already know Postmates isn’t a fair company, so I expect them to manipulate that rule. They already underpay on the 7 cents a minute they’re supposed to pay us for wait time and the per-mile rate from the restaurant to the customer.
Under Prop. 22, Postmates could call us independent contractors but tell us what to wear or how many deliveries we can reject.
If that happens, I’d probably just close out the app and not do it anymore. I value being an independent contractor. I don’t want to be locked in with them telling me when to work and how to do it. That’s why I will be voting against Prop. 22, and encourage other workers who want true independence to do the same.