A top-ranking City Hall official defended Mayor Eric Adams’ veto of a City Council bill on Wednesday that would have increased the hourly pay rate for grocery delivery workers in NYC — saying that the legislation would have led to higher costs for New Yorkers.
Passed by the NYC Council last month, Intro 1135 would have mandated a $21.44 hourly wage for third-party delivery workers, such as those who work for Instacart and similar apps.
First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, who spoke with amNewYork Thursday about the veto, said Adams did not sign off on the bill because it could increase prices.
“It’s undeniable there will be an increased cost on grocery delivery services resulting from increased labor costs for delivery workers,” he told amNewYork.
A spokesperson for Instacart, one of a handful of app companies advocating against the bill, said that the bill, as written, could drive grocery delivery prices up by as much as 46%.
“With food prices already straining household budgets, and with 84% of New Yorkers saying even a $10 increase in grocery costs would be a burden, we continue to stand with the thousands of Instacart customers and shoppers in New York City who have spoken out against this bill,” the spokesperson said.
The bill’s approval last month also outraged FDNY EMS Local 2507 members, as grocery store delivery workers would be paid 13% more than the union first responders.
On April 1, Adams announced a full minimum hourly pay rate for app-based restaurant delivery workers to $21.44, which is more than the city EMS starting pay of about $19-20 an hour.
“The mayor has supported increasing wages, he appreciates the importance of that, he has supported it in other related areas, but at this critical time when grocery prices are too high for low-income New Yorkers, seniors, people with disabilities, this is not the time to pass legislation that will increase the cost to those who need that basic necessities of grociers to live,” Mastro said.
While Adams said the bill would be bad for New Yorkers, the NYC Council said it would protect the 20,000 grocery store deliveristas, many of whom are immigrants, by giving them a fair wage. A spokesperson for the chamber accused the mayor of being hypocritical.
“Mayor Adams is once again displaying hypocrisy – this time, by opposing common-sense minimum pay standards and protections for grocery delivery workers that his own administration negotiated with us to match existing ones for food delivery workers,” City Council spokesperson Julia Agos said in a statement. “This veto demonstrates that the mayor’s claims to care about working-class New Yorkers and a sustainable delivery industry for New York City are hollow, because he is undermining the workers who make the sector possible.”
She added that the council will be considering what to do next. The bill passed on July 14 with a 36-5 vote, a veto-proof majority that could ultimately override the mayor’s rejection.
“It’s disappointing but unsurprising that the mayor is once again prioritizing corporate interests over New Yorkers and parroting inaccurate talking points to justify his actions that hurt working-class people. This council will always stand up for workers in our city, and we will be considering our next steps.”
Adams also vetoed Intro. 1133, which would expand worker protections for food delivery workers to cover all contracted workers hired to deliver goods for a delivery service.
Ligia Guallpa, executive director of the Worker’s Justice Project, called the mayor’s veto a “huge step backward” for NYC.
“By rejecting these bills, the mayor will only make it harder for these predominantly Black and brown workers to feed themselves and their families,” Guallpa said. “Taking food off the table of Black and brown workers is not a meaningful or effective way to address the food insecurity faced by Black and brown communities in New York City. As a society, we should never accept such a meager view of our worth and possibilities.”
