The Consumer Financial Protection Board (CFPB) has sued Walmart and a financial services firm, Branch Messenger, alleging that they required delivery drivers to use an app that charged them fees to access their earnings. The CFPB claims that Walmart’s gig platform, Spark, made it difficult for drivers to access their money without incurring high fees.
According to the lawsuit, Walmart deposited the drivers’ earnings into a third-party account managed by Branch Messenger, which then charged drivers for transferring the funds to their own bank accounts. This resulted in “junk fees” totaling over $10 million paid by workers between 2021 and 2022.
The CFPB alleges that Walmart misrepresented the terms of the Spark platform, telling drivers they would have same-day access to their earnings, but instead forced them to pay high fees to transfer funds to an actual bank account. The agency is seeking to protect workers from exploitative practices by companies like Walmart.
Walmart denies the allegations, calling the CFPB’s lawsuit “riddled with factual errors.” Branch Messenger also claims that the CFPB overreached and accuses the agency of rushing to file a lawsuit for media attention rather than focusing on protecting workers.
Source: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/walmart-branch-app-drivers-junk-fees_n_67699c2ee4b0702da4ac8482