Jay, Uber Driver and Organizer

I’m with Rideshare Drivers United (RDU) and I’ve been a member since 2019. When I started driving, the take rate was 25% commission to the companies and the rest to the driver, and over time it reduced. In 2019, when the rates for drivers dropped again, I saw an ad on Instagram for RDU. That’s when I got involved.

Initially, it was more just to find out for myself, because when you’re driving, you’re on your own, you don’t talk to other drivers, you’re in your own mini world. I got a phone call from RDU and got talking to one of the organizers and they invited me to a meeting—that’s where the connections grew.

At the meetings, the stories were very similar, people felt the same about the rates coming down, earning less, and having to work more for the same pay.  You realize that you’re not alone, there’s a room full of other people who are going through the same thing. It was helpful, because you got to talk to people and you could share ideas like, ‘Where do you park when you’re at the airport?, When do you work?’

At the meetings, the stories were very similar, people felt the same about the rates coming down, earning less, and having to work more for the same pay.

Soon after I joined RDU they were doing a wage claim, so we got  data from Uber and Lyft, and it showed how much they were underpaying drivers. That’s five years ago, and now it’s with the attorneys general from LA, San Francisco, and San Diego.

We don’t know when that result is going to come out, but we took action to make our voices heard by rallying in Los Angeles. We’re getting a petition signed by drivers to put more pressure on the attorneys so that they don’t just settle. 5,000 drivers filled in the wage claims. I think that came to about $1.3 billion. We want the companies to reimburse drivers for the whole amount, or as close to it, not a token settlement so they can close the case.

The other campaign we’re working on now is supporting AB 1340, a bill that would allow drivers to organize, but with some amendments. We went to Sacramento to lobby for the bill and it was a good experience. It was the first time I’ve done it, and the first time for the rest of the group. I’m glad I went. Yes, it cost me money for not working that day, but I think it was in the interest of all drivers, it was beneficial.

I think transparency would be good, too. I’ve tried this experiment where another driver sat next to me, and we get the same ride. One of us gets a higher rate than the other.

You could have another driver in the same area with the same number of rides be offered a different bonus to what you’re offered or sometimes you won’t get a bonus. Sometimes you miss a week, they won’t offer you a bonus. I guess to see if you’d still be driving, and then the other drivers would get a bonus. It’s like playing an algorithm game of who will drive If they don’t give you a bonus.

I don’t chase bonuses because as you’re getting close to the target, the rides get longer or further away. I’ve been out at three in the morning trying to hit my target and then you don’t get anything.

That’s upsetting because you worked all these hours, and you miss your target for the bonus, but you’re banking on it. It takes a long time to realize that it’s like a game, a computer game. It’s like you’re In Vegas and you’re not going to beat the house.  It took me a while, but RDU helped me break out of the cycle. When you’re talking to other people who’ve broken out of that cycle of trying to hit the bonuses, then you realize what the companies are doing.

It takes a long time to realize that it’s like a game, a computer game. It’s like you’re In Vegas and you’re not going to beat the house.

We need fair and reasonable pay. When I first started the companies took 25%. It was a 25-75 split and that was fine, that’s what drew me in. I enjoy driving, getting to see places, I just want to be treated in a fair and reasonable way and be able to say I’m in a safe job.