Lyft, Uber drivers on strike, demanding better pay and transparency at GA State Capitol
Some rideshare drivers across the U.S. have gone on strike, but Uber and Lyft say it won’t impact customers.
A group of those on strike met in Liberty Plaza in front of the Georgia State Capitol on Wednesday, holding signs that demanded better wages for drivers.
Lyft said that the strike had no meaningful impact on service, and Uber called the group small but vocal.
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“They funny,” laughed Yohannes Tekle. “They need to come and say it to my face.”
He said the statements further convinced him and other drivers on strike that the corporations do not care that their employees are struggling financially.
Tekle said he’s been driving for rideshare companies since 2014.
“Within eight hours, I used to make enough money where I could go home, spend time with my family, my kids, take them on vacation,” Tekle said.
He said he’d have to work 15 hours for the same results now.
He showed Channel 2′s Courtney Francisco screenshots of inconsistent mileage prices on his phone.
Before, he said he knew how much money he earned per mile.
“It depends on what day it is for them. It’s not a transparent thing,” Tekle said.
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Other drivers showed their receipts, arguing the companies are taking 50-70% of what the rider pays.
“Price gouging and greed needs to stop,” Felicia Bradshaw said.
“The drivers can’t take it anymore,” Felipe Martinez said. “Gas has gone up, inflation has gone up, and this is why we’re fighting.”
Uber said in a statement its take rate is well below 20%.
“They need to show it,” Tekle said.
Uber said Georgia drivers might notice percentage problems due to insurance.
Georgia auto insurance is higher than the rest of the U.S., according to Uber. So, the service charges the customer more, but it does not give any part of that to the driver.
Lyft said it vowed in February that drivers will always make at least 70% of the weekly rider fares after external fees, like insurance.
“Everything is their fee. They decided to divide it,” Tekle said.
Lyft said it is launching a new earnings summary page in the app so drivers can see a breakdown of the pay scale.
Uber said it sends that receipt to drivers weekly now.
Uber released a statement that read,
“As we’ve seen with past demonstrations from this small but vocal group—most recently on Valentine’s Day where we saw more drivers working compared to the year prior—we anticipate no impact to our business or rider reliability. As of Q4 2023, drivers in the US were making a median of $33 per hour while on a trip, and we recently rolled out new driver protections and deactivation policy changes.”
Lyft also released a statement that read,
“Improving the driver experience is essential to our purpose. That’s why just this February we released a series of new offers and commitments aimed at increasing driver pay and transparency. This includes a new earnings commitment and an improved deactivation appeals process. Now, drivers will always make at least 70% of the weekly rider fares after external fees.”
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