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NORTH AMERICAN Newsline JANUARY 23, 2026 | The Indian Eye 24

Mamdani Administration’s DCWP Sues

Motoclick and CEO, Warns Delivery Apps to

comply with Worker Protections

OUR BUREAU

New York, NY
A
case has been filed on behalf of the City
of New York in New York State Supreme
Court against predatory delivery app Mo-
toclick for egregiously violating the city’s Delivery
Worker Laws. Motoclick, which operates a restau-
rant-facing delivery service, blatantly ignored the
Minimum Pay Rate and stole directly from work-
ers’ paychecks, with shocking tactics that include
charging workers a $10 fee for canceled orders and
deducting the entire cost of refunded orders from
workers’ pay – sometimes claiming that workers
owed the company money. DCWP estimates that
Motoclick and CEO Juan Pablo Salinas Salek owe
workers millions in stolen pay and damages and
seeks to shut the company down completely.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani joined Deputy May-
or for Economic Justice Julie Su, DCWP Commis-
sioner Sam Levine, and advocates from Worker’s
Justice Project and Los Deliveristas Unidos to an-
nounce the lawsuit.
Commissioner Levine also today launched a
compliance blitz, sending notices to Instacart, Door-
Dash, Grubhub, Uber, and others warning them to
adhere to new Delivery Worker Laws taking effect
on January 26. This includes Local Laws 107 and
108, related to tipping protections; Local Law 113
related to delivery worker pay transparency; and
Local Laws 123 and 124, related to expanding the
minimum pay rate to more delivery workers, timely
and weekly payment rights, and improved bathroom
access for delivery workers. As a report DCWP re-
leased earlier this week revealed, DoorDash and the job, a minimum wage for their work, and tips ment marks a new era of co-enforcement in the app
Uber engineered design tricks in their interfaces to that go directly to their pockets,” said Deputy May- delivery industry: rooted in worker leadership, pub-
lower workers’ tip earnings by $550 million. or for Economic Justice Julie Su. “Today’s lawsuit lic accountability, and real consequences for reckless
These actions come as Commissioner Levine against Motoclick is not just an action against one app companies. We are grateful to work in unity with
ramps up efforts to crack down on predatory deliv- company, it’s a warning to every app-based com- Commissioner Levine and the entire Department of
ery apps, reverse worker losses through aggressive pany from this Administration. You cannot treat Consumer and Worker Protection team to make
enforcement of the Delivery Worker Laws, and workers like they are expendable and get away with clear that workers and the city are watching – and
hold companies and individuals accountable for rip- it. We will seek full back pay and damages. We will that the law will be enforced,” said Ligia Guallpa,
ping off the hardworking, majority immigrant deliv- seek full accountability.” Executive Director of Worker’s Justice Project and
eristas who keep New Yorkers fed. “Motoclick and its CEO tricked New Yorkers Co-Founder of the Los Deliveristas Unidos campaign
“Deliveristas make millions of New Yorkers’ into working for their platform with false promises The NYC Department of Consumer and Work-
day-to-day lives easier only for their own to be dif- and then stole their tips and earnings – sometimes er Protection (DCWP) is the nation’s leading mu-
ficult. Today, however, marks the end of a chap- even driving workers into debt.,” said DCWP Com- nicipal enforcement agency charged with delivering
ter of thankless exploitation,” said Mayor Zohran missioner Samuel A.A. Levine. “We are seeking to New Yorkers economic justice and an affordable
Kwame Mamdani. “Our Department of Consumer shutdown this company and other predatory apps city. DCWP leverages its authority to deliver real
and Worker Protection is already cracking down on should be on notice. If you scam your workers, we economic relief to New Yorkers and protect them
everything from baseless violations of the law to de- will hold you and your executives accountable.” from predatory, deceptive, and unfair practices that
ceptive tricks that hurt our delivery workers — and “We are so proud to welcome Commissioner violate their consumer and workers’ rights. This
showing what a government that puts working peo- Levine to our worker center at the very start of his includes pioneering cutting-edge protections, such
ple first can accomplish every day.” tenure and inspired by his decision to stand with as the City’s Consumer Protection Law, Protected
“We know affordability is not just about the cost the 80,000 app delivery workers who are essential Time Off Law, Fair Workweek Law, and Delivery
of goods — it’s about the dignity of work. That’s why to New York City’s economy and critical partners in Worker Laws, including the Minimum Pay Rate for
we have to make sure our deliveristas have safety on enforcing the laws that protect all workers. This mo- delivery workers.

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