Seattle, WA
City Council proposal could lower delivery driver minimum wage law in Seattle
Delivery driver minimum wage law controversy
A new proposal in City Council could mean a change in a law for gig workers in Seattle.
SEATTLE – Seattle City Council is considering a proposed ordinance related to app-based worker labor standards that advocates say would harm gig workers in Seattle.
CB 120775 would revise major parts of the PayUp bill passed by the previous Seattle City Council in May 2022.
The original PayUp bill guarantees a minimum wage for gig workers.
The new proposal would pay gig workers based on an hourly rate when making deliveries to keep the wage at $19.97, which is Seattle’s mandated minimum wage, as well as add a per-mile minimum of $0.35.
Advocates of the original PayUp bill say when you consider payroll taxes and other fees that gig workers have to deal with, CB 120775 misses the mark for meeting the minimum wage.
“At the end of the day, this proposal is to return this industry to sub-minimum wages, which is why we oppose it,” said Danielle Alvarado, Executive Director of Working Washington.
Alvarado blamed customer fees that app-based delivery companies tacked onto customers as soon as the PayUp bill started in January. In Thursday’s Committee meeting, Seattle City Council President Sara Nelson also pointed the finger at customer fees.
“The fee has to go away because no one is disputing that was a catalyst to this,” said Councilmember Nelson.
Councilmember Nelson cited data from Drive Forward, saying the customer fees have reduced customer demand, hurting income for drivers and restaurants in Seattle.
In the past 3 months, DoorDash says there has been an estimated 300,000 fewer orders made in Seattle.
The company sent us this statement:
“It’s painfully clear from listening to Dashers, merchants and consumers that this new law simply isn’t working. The latest numbers show that the longer this law remains in place, the more harm it causes. The compromise proposal presented by Drive Forward that the City Council is considering is a promising step toward increasing affordability for consumers and restoring millions in lost revenue for merchants and Dashers in Seattle.”
However, Alvarado says companies like DoorDash need to share data, especially when it comes to customer fees and that data from Drive Forward is coming from a group founded and funded by Uber.
“So, that tells us it’s an industry-drafted policy which didn’t include so many other stakeholders,” said Alvarado.
Alvarado wants to see data when it comes to customer fees.
“We feel like data really should be provided to explain why those fees have been imposed on customers,” said Alvarado. “What is the impact of those fees on workers? All of that, we think, should be explored.”
Alvarado says CB 120775 also lacks transparency. As listed here, this proposed ordinance would “Eliminate OLS’s ability to require affirmative records production from companies for purposes of administration, evaluation, and enforcement.”
If CB 120775 passes, its impacts could spill beyond the gig worker economy.
“If we have parts of our economy where they say all bets are off, there are no expectations with how businesses treat workers, that’s something that will never stay to one segment,” said Alvarado.
While amendments could be made to CB 120775, a vote on this proposed ordinance could come as early as May 21.
We reached out to Seattle City Council, but a spokesperson said members were not available for interviews on Thursday.
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Thanks to Carrie Brown for the westward view of our Saturday night sunset. The high today hit 68 at the airport – eight degrees above normal – but nowhere near the record for this date, which was 89 degrees back in 2016. The forecast suggests two more days of partly sunny, almost-70-degree weather, before the chance of rain returns.
CHICAGO (AP) — The struggling New York Mets placed former Seattle Mariners second baseman/designated hitter Jorge Polanco on the 10-day injured list on Saturday with a right wrist contusion.
Mariners Injury Update: Latest on Robles, Vargas and more
The move was made retroactive to Wednesday, a day after Polanco went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts in a 2-1 loss at the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 32-year-old Polanco is batting .179 (10 for 56) with a homer and two RBIs in his first season with New York, which has lost nine straight.
“When doctors first took a look at him, it looked like he got hit by a pitch when he didn’t,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “In talking to him, it was just a couple of swings that he took that night. … He didn’t think much of it, but just got worse the following day.
“So you just got to let it calm down a little bit and then we’ll go from there. But we don’t have a timetable for how long this is going to last.”
Polanco, who signed a two-year, $40 million contract with the Mets in December, also has been dealing with an ankle issue.
“He was trending in the right direction,” Mendoza said of the ankle injury. “It’s definitely going to help, obviously now with him being shut down. But the biggest thing now is that we’ve got to take care of that wrist.”
Polanco spent the previous two seasons with the Mariners, who acquired him in a February 2024 trade with the Minnesota Twins.
Polanco struggled during his first season with Seattle in 2024, hitting just .213 with 16 homers in 118 games while playing through a knee injury that didn’t become public knowledge until after the season.
But after the Mariners somewhat surprisingly brought him back for a one-year contract in 2025, Polanco rebounded to hit .265 with 26 homers and an .821 OPS in 138 games last season. He then added three homers during Seattle’s playoff run, along with a 15th-inning walkoff single in Game 5 of the American League Division Series that sent the Mariners to their first ALCS in 24 years.
Seattle Sports staff made additions to this post.
Mariners RHP Bryce Miller to begin rehab assignment
Seattle, WA
Brandon Nimmo hits leadoff homer, Jacob deGrom works 4 scoreless as Rangers beat Seattle Mariners 5-0
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – APRIL 17: Corey Seager #5 of the Texas Rangers tags out Dominic Canzone #8 of the Seattle Mariners during the fourth inning at T-Mobile Park on April 17, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
SEATTLE – Brandon Nimmo hit a leadoff home run, Jacob deGrom threw four shutout innings and Gavin Collyer earned his first career win as the Texas Rangers beat the Seattle Mariners 5-0 on Friday night.
Seattle lost its fourth straight game, and was shut out for the fourth time in 21 games, falling to 8-13. The Mariners were shut out six times during the 2025 season. Texas won its third straight game.
Nimmo led off the game with a 372-foot shot to right field off Mariners starter Logan Gilbert (1-3). It was Nimmo’s 16th career leadoff homer and second of the season. He also hit a leadoff home run on April 11 in a 6-3 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
DeGrom effectively maneuvered through Seattle’s lineup, and worked out of a one out, bases-loaded jam in the first inning. The two-time Cy Young Award winner recorded two of his three strikeouts after walking Josh Naylor to load the bases. Randy Arozarena fanned on a curveball, and Luke Raley swung through a fastball.
Texas added to its lead after Nimmo’s homer. Wyatt Langford’s single to left scored Corey Seager, who led off the third inning with a double. The Rangers stretched the lead to 3-0 on an RBI single from Jake Burger in the seventh.
The Mariners’ best scoring chance came in the sixth after Collyer (1-0), who worked 1 1/3 scoreless innings, left the game.
J.P. Crawford singled to left off Tyler Alexander with two out, and Mariners third base coach Carlos Cardoza sent Naylor from second base, but he was thrown out by Langford.
Texas added two more runs in the ninth on a sacrifice fly by Andrew McCutchen and an RBI double by Josh Jung.
Seattle third baseman Brendan Donovan left the game early due to a left hip issue.
Mariners right-hander Bryce Miller, who started the year on the injured list with a left oblique injury, was at T-Mobile Park for the first time this season. He will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Tacoma on Saturday.
Up next
Mariners RHP George Kirby (2-2, 3.25) will face Rangers righty Nathan Eovaldi (2-2, 5.40) on Saturday afternoon.
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