If you’re an Uber or app-based working driver and new to the Independent Drivers Guild, come to an introductory meeting to discuss the Guild, what benefits we have available to drivers, and why working drivers like you must get involved and stay united to win a fair fare and better working conditions for all.
Earlier this week we emailed drivers to ask how we should respond to President Trump’s executive order banning immigration from certain countries.
A majority of IDG members voted to call on Uber CEO Travis Kalanick to immediately step down from President Trump’s advisory council over the immigration ban.
We’re launching a campaign to tell CEO Travis Kalanick to resign from President Trump’s advisory council immediately.
That’s a good start, but it’s not enough. Uber needs to make a good faith effort to stand with immigrant workers. That’s why we’re also calling on Uber to:
State publicly that drivers will not be penalized for acting in protest of the immigration ban
Immediately institute in-app tipping to support immigrant workers in NYC
Make a substantial donation in support of the work of non-profit organizations fighting the immigration ban.
90% of IDG members say that this ban will affect them or their friends and families directly. As a company that was built with the power of immigrant drivers, Uber has to do much better to support their immigrant workers.
If enough IDG members take action, we can hold Uber accountable to their immigrant workers and take a strong stand against anti-immigrant laws and policies.
President Trump issued an executive order prohibiting citizens of seven majority Muslim countries from entering the U.S. for 90 days. We should expect more anti-immigrant policies from the Trump administration.
Also, Uber CEO Travis Kalanick has agreed to serve on President Trump’s business advisory council, doubling down on Uber’s intention to participate even after the ban was announced.
90% of drivers in NYC are immigrants and we know this issue hits close to home for many of you. We want all IDG members to know that the Guild has your back.
Uber drivers, please take a moment to give us your input on how we should respond, both to President Trump and to Uber leadership.
Since this post was published, the TLC has passed the proposed rules:
On Thursday, February 2nd, the Taxi and Limousine Commission passed revised fatigued driving prevention rules. Under the new rules, TLC will only count the time when a driver has a passenger in the vehicle. Drivers will be limited to 10 hours of passenger time in each 24-hour period and 60 hours of passenger time each week.
The earliest that TLC will issue summonses under these rules is August 15, 2017. Our goal is to reduce risky driving behavior. Before any summonses are issued, we will provide an extensive education and outreach campaign to drivers on the risks of fatigued driving and how to stay within the daily and weekly limits.
This is a message from the IDG organizing committee (a committee of member-activists that are drivers) to fellow For-Hire Vehicle drivers in NYC.
Tomorrow, January 5th, the Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC) is having a public hearing on a changed version of the fatigued driving rule. Our position on the rule in June (when the rule was first proposed) was that the TLC should work toward pay protections for working drivers like you, before regulating the time you can spend on the road. You may find our letter to the TLC here.
Since then, the TLC has moved forward on surveying drivers to collect accurate data on how much drivers are actually making after expenses. They have also changed the proposed fatigued driving rules to try to make them much more friendly to drivers.
The TLC even came to the December driver’s committee meeting to try to understand your perspective and answer our questions and concerns.
The Independent Drivers Guild does not have a position on this new rendition of the rule. We did poll members that attended meeting with the TLC, and those members were slightly in favor of the rule. While there is not enough consensus for the IDG to take a formal position, we did have the opportunity to understand the rule much more clearly. We hope this helps with the confusion and misinformation about this rule.
This is what we know about the proposed fatigued driving rules and what we discussed:
THE TIME CHANGED
The way the TLC is counting the hours has changed. The TLC is looking to encourage bases and drivers to not spend more than ten hours with a passenger. To be clear: Only the time spent while you are WITH A PASSENGER IN YOUR CAR counts toward the rule. Time spent waiting or driving around WITHOUT a passenger WILL NOT count toward the ten hours.
As an example: A few nights ago, a committee member, Rudy, spent 10 hours active on the app, but only had 5 hours and 12 minutes with riders in the car. Only five hours would be counted toward the rule in that case.
WHY DOES THE TLC WANT TRIP DATA?
The more relevant question is: Why is Uber so afraid of the TLC getting this data?
The proposed driver fatigue rules include the collection of For-Hire Vehicle (FHV) drop-off information (location and date/time) in addition to the pick-up information that bases are already giving to the TLC. Any trip data TLC provides to the public does not contain any driver or vehicle license numbers, and trip location information would provide neighborhoods, not specific addresses. As reported by Vice News, it looks like this:
TLC getting drop-off location is the only way to ensure the data TLC receives from bases is accurate, keeping bases accountable to their drivers. This information is the only way the TLC can ensure that only a driver’s time with passengers is counted, and the data will help TLC investigate fare disputes between drivers, passengers, and companies.
You may find all the details of the fatigued driving rules here. And although the Guild is not taking a formal position, you are encouraged to voice yours.
The TLC is holding a public hearing on the proposed rule at 10am on January 5, 2017. The hearing will be in the hearing room at 33 Beaver Street — 19th Floor, New York, NY 10004. Anyone may comment on the proposed rules by:
• Mail. You can mail written comments to the Taxi and Limousine Commission, Office of Legal Affairs, 33 Beaver Street — 22nd Floor, New York, New York 10004.
• Fax. You can fax written comments to the Taxi and Limousine Commission, Office of Legal Affairs, at 212–676–1102.
• Email. You can email written comments to tlcrules@tlc.nyc.gov.
• Website. You can submit comments to the Taxi and Limousine Commission through the NYC rules Web site at www.nyc.gov/nycrules.
• By Speaking at the Hearing. Anyone who wants to comment on the proposed rule at the public hearing must sign up to speak. You can sign up before the hearing by calling 212–676–1135 You can also sign up in the hearing room before the hearing begins. You can speak for up to three minutes.
At the start of 2016, New York City’s For-Hire Vehicle drivers were desperate. Like Uber drivers across the country and around the world, they have been facing dwindling income and had no voice to seek changes and win fair workplace policies. Thanks to thousands of you joining together, New York’s Uber drivers made big strides in 2016.
While there are still challenges ahead, if we continue to band together we can make 2017 the best year yet. But first, let’s take a moment to reflect on all you accomplished in 2016.
2016 Wins
The IDG won NYC working drivers the right to Works Council meetings. As a result, we are the only drivers in the world to meet with Uber management regularly to advocate for changes.
The best job protection of any Uber drivers in the world with our unique appeals process to fight unfair deactivations, overseen by the unbiased American Arbitration Association, a peer panel, and expert representation from the Guild/Machinists Union. About two dozen drivers are now back on the road after being unfairly deactivated. You may find the deactivation appeal application here: http://drivingguild.org/uberdeactivated/
In one of the first Works Council meetings, IDG members overwhelmingly called for a “take me home” option where drivers could choose their destination. A few months later, Uber responded by implementing the destination filter.
New leadership of Uber’s driver customer service—and the promise to completely upgrade the customer service system. Uber has been testing live phone service with about 1,000 drivers, hopefully to expand it to all drivers soon.
Starting January 4th, all luxury drivers will be able to opt out of UberPOOL and UberX rides. So all UberBLACK/SUV drivers will have the “+” option, no matter when you started with the service.
A $1 raise to the minimum rate (not as much as we’d like, but it’s something) and an important statement from the General Manager of Uber NY at our November meeting: “Don’t expect to see anymore price cuts”.
Successfully pressured Uber to crackdown on illegal practices that put legitimate, law-abiding drivers at a disadvantage like illegal airport pick ups and making it harder to spoof your location.
Worked with the TLC to get real, unbiased data on expenses and earnings for For-Hire Vehicle drivers.
Worked with the TLC to get any rule on fatigue to protect drivers that need to pay their bills if they’re driving safely.
Provided discount legal services for NYPD tickets and TLC summons.
Helped several drivers win workers compensation payouts from the Black Car Fund and win back pay from Uber in cases of earnings theft.
Created driver led committees, online communities and a Women Drivers’ Caucus-to build community and discuss the changes that need to happen on the road.
In 2017, we will take on new fights and continue our ongoing work, including:
Our campaign to pressure Uber to add an in-app tipping option (taxis and other ride sharing companies have it, Uber drivers need this important source of income).
Advocating for a bathroom at JFK airport and more restrooms throughout the city
Urging the city and state to pass driver protections, from the city bill to win health insurance for drivers to correcting the unfair state sales tax on black car rides (while taxi and livery are exempt).
Finally, we will also always stand in solidarity with our Muslim and immigrant brothers and sisters. More than 90% of our membership is an immigrant. We don’t know what policies will come from the white house in the next four years, but we will do everything within our power to ensure you and your families are safe.
On behalf of New York’s 45,000 drivers, thank you for all of your hard work this year to win a better life for drivers. You should be proud of all you have accomplished in these past six months. Join the Guild as a Full Member and continue to bring your energy and ideas so we can achieve even more in 2017.
If you’re an Uber or app-based working driver and new to the Independent Drivers Guild, come to an introductory meeting to discuss the Guild, what benefits we have available to drivers, and why working drivers like you must get involved and stay united to win a fair fare and better working conditions for all.
Let us know if you’re coming on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/575453429326994/
The meeting will at 7pm on January 3rd at:
Black Car Fund Safety Center
38-38 Crescent Street
Long Island City, NY 11101
If you are in need of special assistance please send an email to info@drivingguild.org or contact us.
I wanted to send you a follow up note about the results from the last Works Council survey and some notes on the meeting. If you would like to be involved in our ongoing group discussion and be the first to hear about updates, join us in Slack.
Thank you for voting on which issues should be brought up to Uber management. The top issues that you voted on were:
Add a wait timer to all trips
Fair compensation for Long Haul Fares
End Earnings Theft
It’s mostly good news. In fact, the best news wasn’t on the survey, but is straight from the General Manager of Uber NY’s mouth:
“Don’t expect to see anymore price cuts”
Again, join us on Slack to get more involved with our group discussion and be the first to know when there is news.
Tomorrow, Tuesday November 29th, the Fight for $15 is organizing a National Day of Disruption at Zuccotti Park (5:30am onward), in an effort to inspire workers to come together and change the politics of the United States around wages and earnings.
But For-Hire Vehicle workers have always been left behind in the fight for a livable income.
The Independent Drivers Guild is the first and only group that has brought the Taxi and Limousine Commission to the table to consider fare protections for working drivers like you. But Uber misleads the public, and public officials, to believe that people like you take home more than $20 an hour.
We say: No way.
And so have the dozens of IDG members that have met with the Taxi and Limousine Commission. That’s why the TLC sent out an official survey last Friday–so they can have a grasp of how much money you are actually taking home.
Take the official Taxi and Limousine Commission survey now.
We stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters of the Fight for $15, and we hope you get involved with the Guild’s ongoing fight to fix the working conditions of every For-Hire Vehicle worker and ensure you’re taking home a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work.
The Guild exists to give you and your fellow working drivers a direct line to Uber management to discuss the issues with your working conditions that are important to you.
Here are some of the issues and ideas drivers have brought up with us in the past few weeks:
There should be due process like a transparent appeals process when Uber responds to customer feedback (or otherwise) and issues a refund which steals money from drivers.
UberX drivers should be able to opt-out of UberPOOL.
An increased fare on long trips could help cover the costs of deadheading (when you don’t have a customer with you) back to the city.
These issues were chosen in committee meetings over the last few weeks. Poll closes Friday, 11/25 at 5PM. Only New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission licensed drivers may vote.
If you haven’t had the opportunity to fill out this survey yet, we need to know which companies you want to talk to about getting basic protections. Protections like: an appeals against deactivation; companies paying for benefits; systems to protect you against company theft; a seat at the table with company management to improve working conditions; really anything. We need to use the power of working people to get company management to hear workers.
Which app companies are most important for us to bring to the table? Take this survey to let us know which apps you work for.
