Lyft Sparks Uproar After Opening Online Store to Sell Masks to Its Drivers

"The ride-hailing platform Lyft has opened an online store to sell masks and other protective gear as the Covid-19 pandemic intensifies, enraging drivers and labor organizers who say the company should be providing these free," reports the Guardian:

The tech company's move to sell drivers protective gear rather than provide it resurfaces the debate of whether drivers are employees or independent contractors, and to what extent the tech giants carry responsibility for the work conditions of gig workers... The Lyft store launched on 1 June, a company spokeswoman told the Guardian, and sells the supplies "at cost", she said.

"Lyft does not make a profit on PPE," she said, adding that Lyft had distributed more than 150,000 sanitizing products and masks to drivers since the Covid-19 crisis began. "The Lyft store is a resource to provide millions of drivers across the US easy access to cleaning supplies and face masks that have consistently been difficult to find." Still, drivers complain they have shouldered much of the safety responsibilities, and cost. Eden Alva, a driver organizer in the Bay Area, said Lyft should not be charging drivers for the personal protective equipment required to work safely but instead providing it free...

"From the start they have pushed all costs, expenses and risks on to drivers while pocketing as much revenue as possible," he said. "During a crisis like coronavirus, drivers suffer even more, and there isn't any form of safety net."

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