United States of America: Announced settlement in FTC public lawsuit against Arise for allegedly deceiving consumers on its gig work platform and failing to comply with the FTC’s Business Opportunity Rule

On 2 July 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a complaint and proposed a settlement in the lawsuit against Florida-based company Arise Virtual Solutions (Arise) for allegedly deceiving consumers about potential earnings on its gig work platform and failing to comply with the FTC's Business Opportunity Rule. The proposed settlement requires Arise to pay USD 7 million for consumer refunds and mandates clear, substantiated earnings claims in the future. Furthermore, the FTC's complaint highlighted that Arise falsely advertised earnings of up to USD 18/hour, while internal documents showed an average pay of only USD 12/hour. Despite receiving a Notice of Penalty Offenses from the FTC in 2022, Arise continued to make allegedly exaggerated claims, targeting stay-at-home mothers and predominantly Black women. Consumers were required to pay for equipment, training, and monthly fees, further reducing their actual earnings. The FTC's settlement prohibits Arise from making unsubstantiated earnings claims and mandates compliance with the Business Opportunity Rule. The FTC's action was supported by a unanimous Commission vote and filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Arise is also facing separate litigation from the US Department of Labor over worker misclassification.