Council Member Marte introduces Intro 1070 for delivery worker sick time

Thank you.

Councilmember Gawang, followed by Lewis.

Thank you.

Each day, thousands of deliveristas move through our streets in heat waves, in storms, in intense city traffic, and they bring us our meals, they keep our city functioning.

And yet, when a deliverista or their family member gets sick or needs to seek shelter from violence, they face an impossible choice.

Take the time and be punished by the apps, or keep riding and risk their health and safety.

That's not a choice any worker in the city should have to make.

I'm introducing Intro 1070.

for flexible, safe, and sick time to give contracted delivery workers unpaid time off for their and their family's safety and health without the risk of punishment.

This council has really led the way on protecting delivery workers, whether it's providing for minimum pay, bathroom access, or the right to be treated with basic dignity.

And this bill represents a sensible continuation of that approach.

And it builds on our previous recognition that no worker should have to choose between a paycheck

and their health when we passed earned safe and sick time for employees.

So I urge all of you to join me as sponsor.

And I also want to recognize that several colleagues and I joined over 400 fellow New Yorkers in a Jewish-led civil disobedience, calling on our government to stop arming Israel amidst its ongoing genocide in Gaza.

We took this action as Prime Minister Netanyahu, a war criminal wanted by the ICC, speaks at the UN today and is embraced and funded by Trump.

It is time for elected officials to listen to the vast majority of Americans who demand that our federal government end its support for the Israeli military and fund people, not bombs.

Thank you.