This is Why You Should Support the Uber & Lyft Strike On Wednesday
On Wednesday May 8th, Lyft and Uber drivers in cities across the US will be turning off their apps in protest as Uber’s IPO approaches. While the current list of cities includes New York, San Francisco, San Diego, LA, Philly, Chicago, DC, Boston and Minneapolis, ALL of us should refrain from using ride share apps that day.
In some of the cities the strike is only from the hours of 7am to 9am. But organizers inlike Boston are calling for a 24 hour strike. San Francisco drivers are logging out from noon till midnight.
As reported by The Verge, the reason for the two hour strike is that “Labor groups organizing the strike are protesting the companies’ payment and labor practices, and they hope to stymie the ride-hail apps during the crucial morning rush hour on the day before Uber is expected to debut on the public markets.” Drivers in UK cities like London, Birmingham, Nottingham, and Glasgow, are also participating in the strike.
As I noted when Lyft went public, it’s pretty fucked up that all these drivers worked their butts, off giving Lyft a $20 billion valuation, and most of them aren’t gonna see a penny of it. When Uber goes public on Wednesday they will be valued at far more.
As usual, Bernie Sanders nailed it this tweet from a few days ago:
Uber says it can’t pay its drivers more money, but rewarded its CEO with nearly $50 million last year. People who work for multibillion-dollar companies should not have to work 70 or 80 hours a week to get by. I stand with the Uber and Lyft drivers going on strike on May 8.
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) May 3, 2019
Demands striking drivers are asking for include: livable incomes, increased job security, and a guarantee that 80%-85% of each fare is kept by the driver. In recent years, drivers’ per mile rates have gone down while the percent the company kept of each ride went up.
So please join me in supporting these workers in their struggle to obtain better working conditions and wages. On Wednesday take public transit or walk.
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