On the heels of a ridesharing ordinance being passed in Minneapolis, the state has released its findings on compensation for drivers.
The report analyzes trip data from more than 18 million rides in 2022 and includes survey input from over 1,800 drivers.
Commissioner for The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, Nicole Blissenbach, says the main take away was that drivers aren't being paid for all of their time on the job.
"Compensation standard that covers the time a passenger is in the car is great, but we need to make sure that compensation is also accounting for other time, when they're waiting to accept the ride or on their way to pick up a passenger," says Blissenbach.
The findings will ultimately be used to craft state wide policy on compensating ride share drivers.
In Minneapolis however, the City Council decided to move forward with their ordinance on Thursday despite knowing the state report was coming a day later, the threat of a veto from Mayor Frey, and threats by Uber and Lyft to stop service in the city.
"We have an ordinance in front of us right now that will get drivers minimum wage and we should proceed with that and rip the band aid off," said Councilmember Robin Wonsley. "Just do it."
Just minutes after the release of the state report, Mayor Jacob Frey vetoed the Minneapolis ordinance. The council will still have a chance to override the mayor's veto but it's unsure if they'd get enough votes after the state report. It passed 9-4 on Thursday and the Council would need to keep all 9 of those yes votes to override it.
Frey said Friday that the City Council needs to follow the data. The mayor earlier this month he says he’s ready to make a deal based on numbers, and he will call a special meeting with the council in an attempt to prevent an override of his veto.
You can read the entire report here.