Lyft to pay hundreds of millions to California drivers in massive wage theft settlement

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Lyft has agreed to pay $272.5 million to settle claims from California and three of its largest cities that the company mislabeled drivers as independent contractors rather than employees to save money.

Lyft, Uber and similar app-based platforms relying on gig workers have spent over a decade fighting worker misclassification actions.

Under federal and state laws, contractors receive no entitlement to minimum wage, overtime, or additional protections.

California filed suit against Lyft in 2021 alongside Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego.

The action was merged with litigation brought for thousands of drivers.

Subject to court approval, the agreement spans alleged violations committed from April 2016 through December 2020.

In a statement, Lyft maintained that drivers were properly classified under the law, noting "we're glad to put this case behind us.”

According to the state Labor Commissioner's Office, the agreement represents the largest wage theft settlement in California history.

In 2023, Lyft and Uber jointly agreed to pay $328 million to resolve parallel claims brought by New York's attorney general.