Retail

Target's delivery service Shipt is pausing operations in Seattle as a host of new laws are set to change the delivery space

Shipt employee delivering groceries
Shipt is reportedly pausing service in Seattle. Shipt
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Target-owned delivery service Shipt is pausing service in Seattle next month, days before new legal protections for gig workers take effect.

Shipt plans to pause service in Seattle on Jan. 10, the Seattle Times reported Wednesday. Three days later, gig workers like the ones Shipt employs will be subject to two new city ordinances: One requires Shipt and other services to pay drivers the equivalent of Seattle's $17.27-per-hour minimum wage, while the other mandates one day of sick leave for every 30 days of work in the city.

Shipt confirmed the suspension of its services in Seattle to Business Insider.

Customers who have annual and monthly memberships to Shipt are eligible to get a refund based on the amount of time that they have remaining, according to the Seattle Times.

The delivery service's decision comes the same month as an appeals court ruled that food delivery gig workers in New York City have to be paid a $17.96-an-hour minimum wage, according to the New York Post.

In October, Shipt laid off 3.5% of its corporate workforce, AL.com reported at the time. While owned by Target, Shipt also offers delivery from other retailers, including Petco and CVS.

Seattle is also home to two of the nine stores that Target announced it was closing in September, citing crime in its stores.

But neither store was notable for crime based on police call records examined by the Seattle Times.

Do you work for Shipt and have a story idea to share? Reach out to this reporter at abitter@insider.com

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Alex Bitter
Alex Bitter is a senior retail reporter covering the gig economy, food, and retail. His work focuses major gig delivery and ride-hailing apps, including Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, Instacart, and Walmart's Spark. He is interested in everything from what it's like to work on the apps to the companies' business strategies.Some of his recent stories feature gig workers who have been deactivated on the apps, DoorDash hiring traditional employees to make deliveries, gig workers' use of bots, and gig work expanding into new professions, such as nursing.Alex has also written about Aldi's US expansionStarbucks' turnaround efforts, and the fallout from Kraft-Heinz's budget cutting. Convenience store chain Sheetz ended its "smile policy" after his reporting.Before joining Insider in September 2020, he wrote about consumer and retail companies for S&P Global Market Intelligence. He's a graduate of the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa and grew up on the Big Island.Alex lives in the Washington, DC, area, where you can find him studying ancient coins or searching for Civil War artifacts with his metal detector in his free time.Got a tip? Reach out at abitter@bjinnox.com or via encrypted messaging app Signal at +1 (808) 854-4501.