The Delivery Protection Act is simple: if you deliver packages under Amazon’s brand, wear Amazon’s uniform, and drive Amazon’s vans, Amazon should employ you. Right now, Amazon insulates itself through Delivery Service Partners (DSPs) — subcontractors who employ the drivers while Amazon dictates every term of the work.
The bill, introduced by socialist Council Member Tiffany Caban and endorsed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, would require direct employment, facility licensing, and safety standards for last-mile delivery centers.
- Amazon has spent $5 million+ lobbying against it since February — its largest-ever lobbying spend in New York State
- The money flows through Five Borough Jobs Campaign, a coalition tied to the Real Estate Board of New York
- Ads warn of “$664/year household costs” — a figure from a consultant paid $52,500 by the lobbying group
- 30+ council members are cosponsors; Speaker Julie Menin has not yet backed the current version
Latrice Johnson, a former DSP driver, testified about being denied grief counseling after her brother’s death because she “didn’t work for Amazon” — despite delivering Amazon packages in an Amazon van. Her DSP was terminated after workers began organizing with the Teamsters. The union calls it retaliation.
Deputy Mayor Julie Su, former acting US labor secretary, called Amazon’s subcontracting model “an end run around a century of labor protections.” Amazon threatens to move facilities outside the city; activists counter that last-mile logistics must stay close to customers.
The bill is being watched nationally as potential model legislation for cities trying to hold platform-economy giants accountable to labor law.