Fully knit this safety net now

Every day, drivers’ risks increase

The novel coronavirus, COVID-19, has brought the city that never stops to an abrupt halt. New Yorkers are being told not to leave their homes and apartments except when necessary. Employers set company-wide work from home policies. Broadway theaters, entertainment venues and restaurants have shut down indefinitely, at least for sit-down service.

But people still need to get around for essential activities like food shopping and, unfortunately, trips to the hospital and other points of care. The subways and buses may or may not keep running with limited service — but not everyone lives near a stop even if they do. So for those without their own vehicles, that will leave one option: for-hire cars.

Drivers for Uber, Lyft and Via, as well as traditional forhire black car companies, have already been at high risk for infection during the crisis because of the nature of their jobs. Every day, that risk increases.

Fortunately, the black car industry in New York prepared for this — and it’s essential that our drivers know about the free benefits they have access to. The rest of the country’s independent worker industries and local governments should also take note, and learn from New York’s example.

In 1999, New York State law created the non-profit Black Car Fund to protect drivers. In the two decades since then, a surcharge on every ride — paid for by passengers and their companies, not drivers — has funded a range of free benefits. Today, every driver can sign up for workers’ injury compensation, a death benefit, wellness classes, defensive driving courses, and free vision care.

Most importantly during this outbreak, drivers have access to free telemedicine coverage as well. Yes, drivers can call or video chat a free doctor over the phone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. (Drivers can visit CoveredByBCF.com to access benefits.)

Drivers are now accessing this care in record numbers. Michele Dottin, a Brooklyn native, is protecting herself and her passengers by using the coverage. Instead of going to a hospital or sitting in a waiting room, she called up a doctor from her car, who was able to diagnose her over the phone with a noncoronavirus illness and provide a treatment response. Every driver in New York should signup for telemedicine now and do the same.

The problem is, this type of free medical assistance isn’t available to the vast majority of independent workers. It should be. In particular, we should be covering those gig economy workers who are most likely to come in contact with other people as they do their jobs, such as the delivery workers we are relying on even more now than before. Freelancers too should get state-mandated coverage.

The Legislature is mulling a California-style overhaul that would classify many more independent workers and employers. That may or may not be wise, but the fight is likely to be drawn out.

Regardless, there’s something that Albany can do today: move to create Black Car Fundstyle benefits for other independent workers now by adding surcharges on other services. It should also expand existing benefits to create an unemployment insurance fund as we face a potentially rough recession on the other side of this pandemic.

And workers’ compensation should not only cover injuries for independent workers, but also include pandemics and other mass emergency situations that result in lost wages. Expanding driver benefits will give drivers the peace of mind they need to move New Yorkers around during this crisis.

Michele said it best: “Every benefit the Black Car Fund has brought on helped me not worry about my health.” Let’s cover more people like Michele so that independent workers can stay healthy, worry less, and keep New York moving forward. It’s what’s best for everyone during this pandemic. And it’s always been what’s fair for our independent workers.

Adams is Brooklyn borough president. Goldstein is executive director of the Black Car Fund.