fbpx

Bernie: I Stand With Uber And Lyft Drivers. Uber Is Not Poor Company.

Bernie: I Stand With Uber And Lyft Drivers. Uber Is Not Poor Company.

Lyft
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., a candidate for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, addresses during the National Action Network Convention in New York, Friday, April 5, 2019. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Advertisements for ride-sharing jobs make it seem so appealing. Work your own hours. Work for yourself. But Lyft and Uber drivers say driving for these two companies isn’t all that great. In fact, recently some drivers for these ride-hailing giants turned off their apps to protest declining wages at a time when both companies are making billions from investors.

“Demonstrations took place in 10 U.S. cities, including Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington, as well as some European locations like London,” The Miami Herald reported.

The protests happen just before Uber’s initial public stock offering in which Uber aims to raise $9 billion. If it reaches this goal, the company’s valuation in excess of $91 billion.

Listen to GHOGH with Jamarlin Martin | Episode 10: Karen Fleshman Jamarlin talks with Karen Fleshman, founder of Racy Conversations. The lawyer and activist talks about women of privilege exploiting civil rights and diversity movements, and whether Kamala Harris can be trusted on criminal justice reform.

This is why 2020 presidential candidate Bernie Sanders announced he stands with Uber and Lyft drivers and why he tweeted: “Uber is not a poor company. It paid its top five executives $143 million in compensation last year, including $45 million to its CEO. So why are Uber drivers struggling to put food on the table? I stand with striking Uber and Lyft drivers today. The greed has got to end..”

Sanders has backed the ride-sharing drivers before in their quest for higher pay.

The most recent protests were different depending on the location. In New York, for example, some drivers went shur off thei app for two hours during morning rush hour, while drivers in Los Angeles held a 24-hour strike and walked a picket line at Los Angeles International Airport.

“With this strike, we want to deliver a message to the greedy companies who used us to reach their goals,” San Francisco Uber driver Omar Alkhameri told Gizmodo. “Look at how to help drivers make their living and survive. Treat us as human beings.”

“In the UK, the Independent Workers Union said some Uber drivers are observing a nine-hour boycott. The union demands, among other things, increased fares per mile and a decrease in commissions paid to Uber,” AP News reported.

In a press statement, Uber said: “Drivers are at the heart of our service — we can’t succeed without them — and thousands of people come into work at Uber every day focused on how to make their experience better, on and off the road.”

And according to Lyft, its drivers’ hourly earnings have increased during the last two years.