New York City has reached a sweeping enforcement settlement with three major food delivery platforms after investigations found persistent violations of the city’s minimum pay rules for delivery workers. The agreement secures more than $5 million in restitution, penalties, and damages, underscoring the city’s broader push to regulate app based labour and rein in practices that officials say deprive workers of legally guaranteed earnings.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Department of Consumer and Worker Protection Commissioner Sam Levine announced that Uber Eats, Fantuan, and HungryPanda will collectively pay $5.195 million to resolve claims tied to underpayment and improper worker treatment during late 2023 and early 2024. More than 49,000 delivery workers are expected to benefit from the settlement, many of whom city investigators say were routinely paid below the mandated minimum rate for time spent working on the platforms.

Uber Eats accounts for the largest portion of the settlement. The company will pay $3.15 million in restitution to more than 48,000 workers, alongside $350,000 in civil penalties and fees. Investigators found that Uber failed to properly compensate workers for time spent on cancelled deliveries, which under city rules still counts as payable working time. Uber also agreed to reinstate workers who were wrongly deactivated during the enforcement period, a provision that could restore access to the platform for up to 10,000 people.

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Fantuan will pay more than $468,000 in restitution to 285 workers, plus over $52,000 in penalties, after failing to comply with minimum pay requirements between December 2023 and February 2024. HungryPanda, which city officials said showed similar patterns of noncompliance, will pay $1.068 million in restitution to more than 1,000 workers and an additional $106,327 in penalties for violations recorded between December 2023 and January 2024.

City officials said the settlement reflects a deliberate enforcement strategy built around data transparency and worker reporting. Delivery platforms operating in New York are required to submit detailed pay data, allowing regulators to flag irregularities and launch targeted investigations. According to DCWP, this system makes it harder for companies to quietly undercut pay rules while presenting a compliant public image.

Mayor Mamdani said the outcome sends a clear message that profits cannot come at the expense of workers’ rights. Commissioner Levine added that the city’s approach focuses not only on recovering unpaid wages but also on imposing penalties significant enough to deter repeat violations.

The settlement comes amid expanded oversight of app based delivery companies in New York, including stricter pay transparency standards and stronger protections against arbitrary deactivation. City leaders say these measures are intended to bring stability, fairness, and dignity to a sector that has grown rapidly while leaving many workers economically exposed.