Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today announced a lawsuit against GoBrands, Inc. and GB Logistics, LLC (collectively “Gopuff”), the companies behind the popular delivery service Gopuff, for illegally failing to pay its delivery workers minimum wage, overtime, and paid sick leave by misclassifying them as independent contractors rather than employees. The complaint filed by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) also alleges that, with its misclassification scheme, Gopuff is deliberately dodging its legal obligations to pay into the District’s unemployment insurance and paid family leave programs and failing to maintain workers’ compensation coverage.
“Businesses operating in the District cannot cut corners and cheat their workers. Through its misclassification scheme, Gopuff is taking advantage of its delivery drivers and also defrauding the District out of critical revenue,” said Attorney General Schwalb. “As DC’s independent Attorney General, I will always defend workers, ensure a level playing field for businesses that play by the rules, and protect taxpayers’ dollars.”
Gopuff is a gig economy company that provides consumers with shopping and delivery services, with a focus on alcohol, tobacco products, and snacks. It operates in over 500 cities, with thousands of delivery workers nationwide, and hundreds in the District. Since 2014, Gopuff has systematically misclassified all of its delivery workers as independent contractors to keep from paying them minimum wage and overtime and to avoid providing them sick leave benefits, all of which they are entitled to under District law. In addition, Gopuff’s misclassification scheme allows the company to evade workers’ compensation insurance coverage for its drivers and contributions to the District’s unemployment insurance and paid family leave programs.
Gopuff treats its delivery workers as employees, not independent contractors. It hires and fires them; trains them; unilaterally determines their rate of pay; depends on their performance for its own success; and maintains full control over their hours and working conditions. To sign up for a shift, delivery workers submit their schedule requests and receive shift assignments. When they are “on shift,” they are expected to be physically present at the facility and available to take orders for the entire duration of their shifts. While they can receive unscheduled shift assignments, they must be near a fulfillment center and required to report to work to receive them. Delivery workers cannot even decide where to work—Gopuff assigns each of them to one of four specific processing facilities in the District. Although Gopuff claims that delivery workers can decide whether to accept a particular delivery, the company punishes them for refusing delivery offers by moving them to the end of the delivery worker queue, cancelling their shifts, or suspending them completely.
OAG alleges Gopuff’s illegal misclassification scheme violates the District’s Minimum Wage Revision Act, Sick and Safe Leave Act, Wage Payment and Collection Law, Unemployment Compensation Act, Universal Paid Leave Act, Workers’ Compensation Act, and False Claims Act.
OAG’s lawsuit seeks to end Gopuff’s illegal conduct, bring the company into compliance with District laws, and require the company to pay back wages and damages to impacted delivery workers, pay unemployment insurance contributions, pay paid family leave contributions, and civil penalties to the District.
A copy of the complaint is available here.
This matter is being handled by Assistant Attorneys General Norman Anderson, Kara Mahoney, and Morgan Sperry; Dennis Corkery, Assistant Chief of the Workers’ Rights and Antifraud Section; Investigator Kenithia Alston; and Graham Lake, Chief of the Workers' Rights and Antifraud Section.
OAG’s Efforts to Protect Workers
OAG’s Workers’ Rights and Antifraud Section is dedicated to fighting wage theft, protecting District workers and ensuring that businesses in the District compete on a level playing field. Since AG Schwalb became the District’s elected, independent Attorney General in January 2023, OAG has secured more than $19 million for workers and the District. In total, since gaining independent wage theft enforcement authority in 2015, OAG has secured over $35 million by investigating and bringing enforcement actions against employers who violate District law. OAG’s wage theft enforcement efforts have focused on industries with high populations of vulnerable workers, such as construction, restaurants and hospitality, healthcare, and the gig economy.
How to Report Wage and Hour Violations
Workers who believe that their rights have been violated, or that they have experienced wage theft or other wage and hour violations, can contact OAG by calling (202) 724-7730 or emailing workers@dc.gov or trabajadores@dc.gov.