According to a recent report by public transit worker advocacy group Ridefair, Uber drivers in Toronto earn an average of $7.90 an hour after expenses, well below the Ontario minimum wage of $15.50 an hour.
According to The Globe and Mail, the report estimated the cost, including gas, auto insurance and vehicle maintenance, to be at least $12 an hour. The average wage for an Uber driver, including costs, is $20 an hour.
The report was analyzed by an independent researcher in Waterloo based on data from the City of Toronto, the Internal Revenue Service and Uber’s own data.
Tom Sleeley, who wrote the report, said Uber has rarely disclosed wage-related information, so he compiled data from multiple sources.
In a statement sent to The Globe and Mail, Uber argued that the reported figures did not match the actual figures. The company said in December that Toronto’s Uber drivers earned an average of $33.98 per hour based on the number of hours spent picking up passengers. This amount does not include tip.
The $20 an hour wage reported by Ridefair includes the time Uber drivers are paid for rides and the time they spend waiting when they are not picking up passengers. Based on City of Toronto data, the report estimated actual travel time to be 48% of total hours worked.
In response, advocacy groups argue that Uber should recognize drivers as workers, not sole proprietors, and pay minimum wage, including waiting time.
However, Uber said it has some workers accessing other platforms, such as Lyft and DoorDash, at the same time, making it complicated to include waiting time in their working hours.
Meanwhile, the Ontario government passed a law in April that would require ridesharing companies to pay drivers minimum wages only for the time a passenger rides.
However, according to internal data sent to Uber and worker advocacy groups obtained by The Globe and Mail in December, the Department of Labor is reportedly considering forcing Uber drivers to pay a minimum wage higher than $15.50 an hour, considering waiting times.