SERVING JAMAICA QUEENS AND IT'S SURROUNDING NEIGHBORHOODS
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Delivery Workers Cheer Restroom Access and Tip Transparency Alongside AOC and Chuck Schumer
Gabriel Lopez, who has been making a living as a food delivery worker for over 18 months, braved the elements in Midtown, Jan. 21, 2022. Hiram Alejandro Durán/ THE CITY
Starting Sept. 24, New York City’s app-based food delivery workers are entitled to increased clarity on their daily earnings and tips, and the right to use most restaurant bathrooms, as new laws begin their rollout.
The Deliveristas celebrated the new protections Sunday afternoon with a rally in Times Square, flanked by allies including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-The Bronx/Queens) and Sen. Chuck Schumer, who has advocated for federal funds to create rest stops for the workers and other supports.
Also joining were city Comptroller Brad Lander and Councilmembers Carlina Rivera (D-Manhattan) and Justin Brannan (D-Brooklyn), among the lawmakers who introduced the Council bills.
The rally drew dozens of Deliveristas, many of whom hail from Indigenous communities from Mexico and Guatemala. Workers from Bangladesh and Mali also participated.
“We’re going to see big, big changes with these laws,” upper Manhattan delivery worker Manny Ramírez, 34, told THE CITY on Friday. “The discrepancy between what the client thinks we get paid and what the apps actually pay was immense — but now there is more awareness, and we felt like we’d won with that alone.”
“We feel like winners,” said Ernesta Galvez, 40, who works for the Relay app and is one of the few women among the Deliveristas. “It’s emotional to think about how far we’ve come.”
Ocasio-Cortez said in a phone interview on Sunday that the local gains for delivery workers send important signals nationally.
“What we’re seeing with the Deliveristas and the working class in New York, particularly tech workers, is such a strong counterpoint to what we’ve seen in California,” she said, noting that state’s ban on gig workers being recognized as full time employees.
Nearly four tons of illegal cannabis and related products, valued at around $10 million, were seized, and two men were arrested during a raid at a Floral Park storage facility on Tuesday, Sept. 17.
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced the details on Thursday, following the execution of a search warrant that day. Awad Aziz, 31, and Muneer Kassim, 34, both of Brooklyn, were arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on Wednesday night on charges of criminal possession of a controlled substance after authorities discovered a smaller quantity of crystal meth and Psilocybin products during the raid.
Ready to roll the dice and take a tour of Queens, one property at a time? The world’s most famous board game is getting a local twist with the debut of MONOPOLY: Queens Edition.
A residential street in Bayside was closed on Monday evening to accommodate the substantial crowd of local residents, including some who traveled from southeast Queens to protest the City of Yes initiative.
The Greater Jamaica Development Corporation(GJDC) is hosting its third annual Jamaica Q 5K Walk/Run at 8 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28. The USTAF-certified 5K run is designed to unite the community through a day of fitness and physical activity.
MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said Wednesday he is confident that the MTA will get the $68.4 billion needed to fund the five-year capital plan unveiled the same day.
Ahead of the 2024 general elections, a New York-based Democratic education and activist organization has launched a campaign focusing on dual residents to influence the outcome in critical swing districts—such as in Queens, Long Island and upstate.
The youngster, who was not identified because he is a juvenile, was charged with second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon for shooting William Alcindor, 66, as he was driving on Farmers Boulevard just before 5 p.m. on Monday.
Ghost car drivers are in for a scare. Mayor Eric Adams and other top city officials held a press conference at the Springfield Gardens Auto Pound on Wednesday, Sept. 18th, to announce the launch of a joint NYPD and New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) task force to remove ghost cars from city streets.