As communities grapple with the catastrophic consequences of COVID-19, DoorDash, Grubhub, Postmates and UberEats are using abusive, deceptive and often illegal practices to take control of the restaurant industry. With the backing of Wall Street giants, the dominant delivery apps charge enormous fees, plagiarize menus, break labor laws, manipulate Google search results, and prop up ghost kitchens, making it nearly impossible for restaurants and their workers to get by.

Across the country, restaurants, workers, and local communities are fighting back. The American Economic Liberties Project, the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, and the Protect Our Restaurants campaign hosted a conversation on the federal and state policies we need to take on these predatory middlemen and create healthy restaurant markets.

We heard from Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05), who joined Reps. Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) and Jan Schakowsky (IL-09) in calling for an investigation of the apps, as well as small business owners and advocates taking on the apps in communities across the country.

Opening Remarks from Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05)

Moderator:
Stacy Mitchell, Co-Director of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Panel: The Case Against Dominant Delivery Apps

Speakers:
Katy Connors, Advisory Board Chair of the Independent Restaurant Alliance of Oregon
Kristen Corral, Owner of Tacotarian, a plant-based Mexican restaurant in Las Vegas, NV
Andrew Rigie, Executive Director of the New York City Hospitality Alliance
Collin Wallace,  Co-founder of Eatgeek and former Head of Innovation at Grubhub

Moderator:
Sarah Miller, Executive Director of the American Economic Liberties Project