Couples hoping to get a ride home from the airport or order a food delivery on Valentine’s Day could be out of luck, with App drivers in 12 cities across the country set to walk off the job in wide sweeping strike action.
According to the coalition, workers are calling for better wages and safety measures, among other things, to ensure the long-term viability of working as an app driver. In addition to going dark on the apps, some are also planning to picket outside airports and Uber offices.
“We’re sick of working 80 hours/week just to make ends meet, being constantly scared for our safety, and worrying about being deactivated with the click of a button,” the statement said.
“We’re not taking rides to or from any airport on February 14, we’re going on strike and telling the app companies that we won’t take it anymore.”
At this stage, drivers in 12 cities across seven states have actions planned.
Between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., anyone looking for a ride might find it more challenging in Austin, Chicago, Hartford, Miami, Newark, Orlando, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Rhode Island, and Tampa. Justice for App Workers also encourages drivers in other locations to reach out and hold strike events.
The strike, the first since Uber and Lyft went public in 2019, is being organized amid accusations the platforms are taking disproportionately high commissions from drivers. Nicole Moore, president of the California-based Rideshare Drivers United union, said in a media statement she is at a loss to explain how the app companies are calculating driver wages.
“A year into algorithmic pricing, drivers have seen incredible decrease of our pay ... Whatever calculations and algorithms they’re using, it’s absolutely useless,” she said.
Big App Companies Say They’re Addressing Concerns
In a media statement to The Epoch Times, a Lyft spokesperson said the company has already started taking steps to address drivers’ concerns, especially around pay.“We are constantly working to improve the driver experience, which is why just this month we released a series of new offers and commitments aimed at increasing driver pay and transparency,” the spokesperson told The Epoch Times.
“This includes a new earnings commitment and an improved deactivation appeals process. Now, drivers will always make at least 70 percent of the weekly rider fares after external fees. It’s all part of our new customer-obsessed focus on drivers.”
A massive concern for drivers is being deactivated—essentially, getting fired as a driver for the company. If your account is deactivated, and you can no longer receive income or accept fares.
Uber Says During Last Year’s Strike, Business Was Still Booming
In a media statement to The Epoch Times, an Uber spokesperson claimed that the strike action was only going to involve a minority of drivers, and that previous strike actions actually helped spark an increase in business.“While this is an opportunity for some union-backed groups to get some media attention, we do not expect it will impact overall trip levels, prices, or driver availability,” the spokesperson said.
“During last year’s Valentine’s Day strike, we saw an increase in trips in the U.S.,” they added.
According to Uber, the company’s effective take rate in the U.S. net of commercial insurance costs, is well below 20 percent, and as of Q4 2023, drivers in the U.S. were making about $33 per utilized hour. The company also says it doesn’t take the decision to deactivate a driver lightly and conducts human-led investigations to make such decisions.
“Our case review process provides drivers with important deactivation information, allows drivers to dispute deactivations, and enables them to submit relevant information that would support their reactivation,” the spokesperson said.
“We are deeply committed to the safety of drivers on the Uber app and have developed a number of safety features in the app for drivers over the past several years,” it added.
The Epoch Times has contacted DoorDash for comment on the strike and drivers’ concerns.
