Attorney General Schwalb Secures $95,000 from Online Grocery Store for Misclassifying and Underpaying Workers and Denying Them Paid Sick Leave

Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today announced that Weee! Inc., Weee! Logistics LLC, and Weee! OD Foods, LLC (together, "Weee!"), an online grocery delivery company, has agreed to pay $95,000 to delivery drivers and the District to resolve allegations of worker misclassification, which deprived more than 95 drivers of wages and benefits they are entitled to under DC law. Weee! has also agreed to reclassify its delivery drivers as employees instead of continuing to improperly classify them as independent contractors. The company cooperated with an investigation by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) by promptly providing the District with requested information and demonstrating a willingness to change its practices to comply with District law.

"The District's legal protections for workers apply across industries and business models, and all companies - including those that rely on technology-enabled 'gig work' - must follow the law," said Attorney General Schwalb. "This settlement puts money back in the pockets of hardworking delivery drivers who were deprived of wages, paid sick leave, and other benefits they should have received. We won't allow businesses in the District to cheat workers or gain an unfair advantage over their competitors by engaging in illegal misclassification."

Weee! is an online-only grocery store and grocery delivery company that describes itself as "America's Largest Online Asian Supermarket." An investigation by OAG uncovered evidence that Weee! violated DC labor laws by:

• Illegally classifying delivery drivers as independent contractors. OAG alleged that since 2022, Weee! misclassified at least 95 drivers as independent contractors, despite exercising enough control over them that they should have been treated as employees. As a result of this misclassification, the workers were denied benefits and employment protections-including eligibility for overtime wages and workers' compensation-that they should have received as employees.
  
• Failing to provide paid sick leave. Because workers were illegally misclassified as independent contractors, they did not receive any paid sick leave. Under DC law, employers must provide employees with paid sick and safe leave, which they accrue based on the number of hours they work.
  
• Failing to pay workers for split shifts. By misclassifying workers, Weee! avoided paying split shift pay. Under DC law, each day a worker works multiple non-consecutive shifts that are separated by a break longer than one hour, the employer must pay one additional hour at the minimum wage.

Weee! cooperated with OAG's investigation, and under the terms of a settlement agreement, the company agreed to:

• Pay $95,000 to workers and the District.
  
  • $47,500 in restitution to workers who were misclassified. Eligible current and former Weee! delivery drivers will be contacted by a claims administrator within the next 90 days.
    
  • $47,500 in penalties to the District.
    
• Reclassify all DC delivery drivers as employees. Weee! drivers who spend more than 50% of their time working in DC will be classified as employees and receive all the wages, benefits, and employment protections employees are entitled to under DC law.
  

The settlement agreement is available here.

This matter was handled by Assistant Attorney General Tascha Shahriari-Parsa, Assistant Section Chief Dennis A. Corkery, and Section Chief Graham Lake.

What Is Worker Misclassification?
Misclassification is a form of payroll fraud that reduces labor costs for companies at the expense of workers. When companies improperly classify their employees as independent contractors, the workers are deprived of rights and benefits they are legally entitled to as employees, including minimum wage, overtime compensation, and paid sick leave. By engaging in illegal misclassification, companies also shift their own tax burden onto the workers they improperly classify as contractors and deprive the District of tax revenue, unemployment insurance premiums, and workers' compensation contributions. Additionally, companies that violate the law and misclassify workers undercut law-abiding competitors and undermine fair competition.

OAG's Efforts to Protect Workers
OAG's Workers' Rights and Antifraud Section is dedicated to fighting wage theft, protecting District workers, and ensuring that businesses in the District compete on a level playing field. Since gaining independent wage theft enforcement authority in 2015, OAG has secured over $39 million - including more than $23 million since AG Schwalb became Attorney General in January 2023 -- by investigating and bringing enforcement actions against employers who violate District law. OAG's wage theft enforcement efforts have focused on industries with high populations of vulnerable workers, such as construction, restaurants and hospitality, healthcare, and the gig economy. Learn more about OAG's efforts to uphold workers' rights over the last year in OAG's 2025 Labor Day Report.

How to Report Wage and Hour Violations
Workers who believe that their rights have been violated, or that they have experienced wage theft or other wage and hour violations, can contact OAG by calling (202) 724-7730 or by emailing [email protected] or [email protected].

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