New York Leads with Uber Settlement: Ensuring Unemployment Benefits for Drivers & Couriers

Uber Technologies, Inc. UBER entered into a settlement agreement with the New York State Department of Labor to help assure that eligible drivers and couriers can get unemployment benefits.

Uber will begin making quarterly payments to the New York State Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund and make a retroactive payment to the UI Trust Fund for payments owed since 2013, according to a statement. 

"This unprecedented settlement with Uber sends a powerful message to working people: New York has your back," New York Governor Hochul said. 

New York is the first state in the country with which Uber has agreed to a settlement that addresses both past and future unemployment insurance liability.

Additional details, including the total dollar amount of the settlement, cannot be publicly disclosed. This is due to federal and state laws and regulations that limit the disclosure of confidential unemployment insurance data, which includes details about an employer's unemployment insurance account.

In related news, on Thursday, Uber and Lyft, Inc. LYFT each reached a settlement agreement, with a total sum of $328 million, to resolve allegations by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

The settlements resolve multi-year investigations into Uber and Lyft, which found that the companies' policies withheld hard-earned pay from drivers and prevented them from receiving valuable benefits available under New York labor laws. 

Uber will pay $290 million, and Lyft will pay $38 million in two separate settlement funds, which will be entirely distributed to current and former drivers. 

Price Action: UBER shares are trading higher by 1.76% to $47.30 premarket on the last check Friday.