Written By Ty Barnes
A few years ago, I made a decision that many people in my circle thought was crazy. I walked away from a comfortable, secure career in corporate America to start a local delivery company right here in New York City.
I named my company NorthStar Logistics for a reason. As the story of the Underground Railroad has long been told, enslaved people looked to the North Star as a guide toward freedom. For me, that name represents what I want this company to be: a path toward economic freedom for people from the same communities I came from. I wanted to build something that could give people a way forward.
Now, a new law could drag us backward. The Delivery Protection Act would ban large companies from using independent contractors like me and require them to hire last-mile delivery workers—my current employees. If the bill passes, my business will be forced to shut down.
The consequences would reach far beyond me. For Black New Yorkers, the stakes are especially high at a time when Black unemployment is rising, and the racial wealth gap remains wide. The latest jobs report shows Black unemployment jumped to 7% in September, nearly twice the rate for white workers. The increase was even sharper for Black women, whose unemployment rate rose to 7.3% in September, up from 5.9% in August.
My company employs hundreds of local residents. Up to 90% of my delivery team lives in the five boroughs where they work. Economic opportunity is especially important in these communities, particularly as Black workers face growing job insecurity.
That is why employees at NorthStar start at almost $25 with great benefits – 45% above the city’s minimum wage – and why I spend so much of my time and effort supporting employee education and career advancement to ensure they have strong economic mobility. I have supported employees who start as drivers and move into management. I have helped employees pay for job exams and tuition. Some former employees have gone on to become MTA bus operators, police officers, and pharmacists. Others have earned their commercial driver’s licenses and moved toward careers they once thought were out of reach. My work has even earned me inclusion on the NY Unsung Hero list for 2026.
If I’m forced to close, my employees will no longer receive the Sunday meals I provide, and I won’t be able to support an organization in the Bronx that feeds the homeless through my nonprofit. My employees know they are more than a number to me. I know their names, and I know their families.
The bill could also push delivery operations outside New York City. That would mean longer commutes for workers and could make it harder for people who live in the Bronx and other outer-borough communities to keep these jobs.
For me, there are other personal costs. I am the sole provider for a family member with special needs. Some of the medical care my family needs is not covered by insurance, and my business gives me the ability to pay those costs. My company also supports District 75 public schools, which serve students with special needs. If the business disappears, that financial support disappears too.
I
understand why supporters want stronger protections for delivery workers. I want workers to have good jobs and fair treatment. But I don’t believe we should achieve that goal by wiping out the small businesses that created these opportunities in the first place.This is what economic disenfranchisement looks like. A person takes a risk, builds a business, and creates a path for other people. Then a policy can come along and take that path away.
I took a risk on New York City because I believed in what could happen when people from our communities get the chance to build something of their own. I still believe that.
City Council members need to understand what is at stake before they move forward w
ith this bill. They should sit down with small delivery business owners and listen to what happens to our workers if our companies disappear. We live in a democracy, and in a democracy, everyone has a voice and should be heard. This sweeping bill will end small businesses for the sake of driving direct employment from Amazon, which makes it possible for the unions backing this bill to come in and force unionization of delivery drivers.If the goal is to protect working people, then we need to protect their opportunities too.
For Black and Brown New Yorkers, economic opportunity cannot be treated as disposable. We are still working to close a racial wealth gap that has existed for generations. We are still trying to create businesses that can support families and give the next generation a better starting point.
I built NorthStar because I wanted to be a beacon for people who needed to see a way forward. City Hall should not turn that light off.
Ty Barnes is the owner of NorthStar Logistics, a premier, top-rated Amazon delivery service partner specializing in last-mile delivery.