Council Member Hanif asks DCWP and DOT about reforms for delivery workers

Thank you, Majority Leader, and thank you all for being here.

What specific reforms or rulemaking are currently underway at DCWP and DOT to improve street safety and working conditions for delivery workers?

Well, thank you, Council Member.

I think the most important rule that we're implementing right now with the

the street safety is our deactivation protections that the council passed last year.

As I've testified earlier and throughout this hearing, we are never going to have safety on New York City streets if our delivery workers feel they need to choose between their livelihood and their safety.

If they feel, as Chair Breyer said, that the app companies are imposing unrealistic delivery times on them such that they have to cut corners.

We are committed to vigorous enforcement of the deactivation rules, and I should add, we are also committed to vigorous enforcement, as we saw with the lawsuit against DoorDash, of our minimum pay rate, which is going to ensure that delivery workers can earn a decent pay

without having to put their lives and the lives of other New Yorkers at risk.

So as I've said throughout this hearing, I think it's a theme from this administration, street safety and worker rights are not in tension.

They are complementary, and we're going to take a whole-of-government approach to making safer New York City streets a reality.

I appreciate that.

And then you're from?

Yeah, so I think two main points.

One is obviously the Vision Zero Reimagined report, which across the board is looking to improve safety for all street users, including delivery workers.

For delivery workers specifically, we launched the Sustainable Delivery Unit in July of last year.

And, you know, their whole mission is to address street safety challenges associated with on-demand delivery services and commercial cycling.

So they work to address the impacts of on-demand delivery industry through collaborative, innovative approaches that are...

Advance the responsible.

Who leads that unit and how much people?

It's called the Sustainable Delivery Unit, SDU.

Sustainable Delivery Unit, and that's within DOT.

And is there, who runs it?

What's the frequency of meetings?

Is there a report?

And I don't have a lot of time.

Sure.

The head of the unit right now is Irene Figueroa-Ortiz.

She is on leave.

It reports into the commissioner's office, though, so it is very close to our leadership decision-making and collaboration across the agency at large.

Got it.

I will follow up with some more questions about that unit.