Doordash Gives Delivery Workers Option to Be Paid Hourly

Doordash announced that it will offer a new payment option for its "dashers," as the online food delivery company calls its delivery workers, who can choose to be paid hourly instead of per delivery. The move comes as the company marks its 10th year in business.

On Wednesday, Doordash said its workers will be able to opt for a "guaranteed minimum rate" that begins when they accept a delivery order, a change that allows them to account for unexpected delays, a representative of the company told The Messenger. That rate ends once the food reaches its destination.

Regardless of which they choose, dashers can expect to earn roughly the same average amount, the company representative said. The workers will keep 100% of their tips regardless of which payment method they prefer.

Kristen Hawley, a restaurant and technology journalist and founder of the newsletter Expedite, told The Messenger that the new payment method allows dashers to know "how much money you are going to make rather than 'this is how much money you could get.'"

Doordash says it has employed 13 million delivery workers since its 2013 launch, who have have earned over $35 billion collectively. They make between $2 to $10 in base pay per delivery, not including tips and promotions such as extra "challenge bonuses" and for working at peak times.

A company representative told The Messenger that 72% of dashers spend fewer than four hours per week working for the company, and 90% work for fewer than 10 hours weekly.

The company also announced Wednesday that it gave a $10,000 one time "gift" to dashers who joined the company when it was founded in 2013, still work for the company and have completed more than 10,000 deliveries.

Earlier this month, New York City passed the nation's first minimum wage law affecting delivery workers, which setting the pay at $17.96 per hour, according to expedite.news.