You Won’t Be Able To Get An Uber Anymore In One Major City
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An Uber driver strike will leave many New York City residents without a way to get around today. The strike, which is largely taking place at Uber’s lower Manhattan headquarters, comes following the news that those Uber drivers are not getting the raise they were promised earlier in the year. It is unclear if the strike will last past Monday.
The controversy stems from a new implementation put in motion by the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission. Because of their operating locale, Uber drivers in New York City are considered to be a part of the T&LC. Thus, when the T&LC announced that all members would be getting an 11% pay increase, it applied to Uber drivers, too.
Uber quickly moved to take legal action to stop its drivers from receiving the pay raise. The company’s legal maneuvers led a New York City judge to halt the pay raise for Uber drivers temporarily. Consequently, a strike erupted in that ruling’s wake.
Approximately 100 New York City Uber drivers are participating in the drivers’ strike. Speaking with ABC7 Eyewitness News, Jose Tavares, who has been an Uber driver for seven years, explained that he thought it was important to participate in the strike even though it means losing pay because he believes Uber is not being fair to its employees. “[Drivers] want Uber to be a successful company. But we also want Uber to be fair. Play fair,” asserted Tavares.
Michelle Dottin, another employee participating in the Uber drivers’ strike, expressed her disbelief to ABC, citing that the company took away the pay raise right as the holidays are upon us. “It’s Christmas. You stop a raise six days before Christmas!? Uber Enough is Enough,” Dottin said to the ABC reporter.
Uber’s motives behind stopping the raise that incited the current Uber drivers’ strike, at least for the time being, are deductively purely financial. Uber would reportedly need to pay out an additional $21 million per month to its drivers. Also, the company is likely considering what raising driver wages would mean for riders.
Regardless if the Uber drivers’ strike results in a positive outcome for its employees, the transportation giant has undoubtedly realized that if it pays its drivers more money, some of that cost will have to get passed down to the consumer. This could cause Uber to lose out on rides that would have otherwise been booked.
Thinking in that same vein, since the raise applies to all T&LC members in New York City, all riders will effectively have to start paying more for rides. The base fare for riding in a New York City cab is increasing from $2.50 to $3.50. If Uber is able to avoid implementing the raise, it could give them an edge in attracting more new riders looking to save money on fares.
What’s right for the company’s bottom line, however, may not be the best thing for its drivers. The cost of living in New York City is one of the highest in the entire nation, and that has only been amplified by the current bout of unceasing inflation ravaging the economy.
Considering that, many drivers likely need this raise. Jose Tavares told reporters that his job with Uber is his livelihood. He said to reporters that it’s how he feeds his kids and satisfies his bills, and those things are what ultimately led him to participate in the drivers’ strike.
