The city of Chicago has transportation network providers.

The minimum wage in Chicago is less than it is in other parts of the country, according to a new study.There is a stock photo of (Shutterstock).

According to a new study, ride-sharing drivers should be declared employees, not contractors, because they only get paid above the minimum wage in Chicago.

The University of Illinois Labor Education Program held an event this week called "On-Demand Workers, Sub-Minimum Wages: Evidence from Transportation Network Provider Trips in the City of Chicago".The study was a product of the Illinois Economic Policy Institute and the Project for Middle Class Renewal at the university.

In the middle of September and September 2020 there were 78,000 trips completed through Chicago's three transportation network providers.There were less than 67,000 licensed drivers a year later in the midst of the COVID-19 epidemic.The average number of trips completed by drivers over the course of the month was 123.

The number of miles driven with passengers went down.Drivers completed trips at a faster pace due to decreased traffic congestion, as the average distance traveled dropped 5 percent.

The study found that ride-hailing drivers were above the minimum wage after expenses.The average driver in Chicago earned $12.30 per hour in 2019, 5 percent less than the minimum wage.The estimate that the average driver in Chicago earned in 2020 was artificially inflated because they did not experience the usual levels of traffic congestion.The study estimated that the average driver in Chicago would only earn $13.62 per hour in 2020 with pre-pandemic levels of traffic congestion, 3 percent below the minimum wage.

The study said that drivers in Chicago make between $19 and $23 per hour in gross earnings, but they earn less after expenses and taxes.

The difference in tips was not an attempt to make up for it.The average customer tip decreased by 39 percent and the share of trips resulting in a tip to the driver decreased from 21 percent to 14 percent.

Chicago's drivers get sub-minimum wages; they are treated as independent contractors and their earnings are shifted to executives/shareholders.Frank Manzo IV and Robert Bruno are from Illinois.

Frank Manzo IV presented a paper on the gig economy this week.Flexibility for workers is provided by the gig economy.He said that people are attracted to work for the company because it offers flexibility and is often in a part-time status.These app-based companies pay low wages for drivers.Estimates vary, but the best ones show that drivers for the ride-sharing service earn between $9 and $16 per hour after vehicle expenses and taxes.Many workers earn less than the minimum wage.

Manzo said there are important social consequences to the industry.Workers in the industry are less likely to have health insurance.Even though it is the same work, research has found that women earn less than men.It isn't going to help in closing the gender pay gap if this is the future of work.