NYTWA Campaign:
Job Security for App Drivers
Stop Deactivations Without Cause, Notice, or Appeal!
One of our members tells App Companies: “Stop Firing Us!” on the steps of City Hall when we presented the drivers’ demands on July 18, 2019.
Read the viral Twitter thread written by Nicole Moore, an Uber driver and organizer with Rideshare Drivers United, our sister organization in Los Angeles:
From coast to coast, we know that Uber and Lyft’s cruel deactivation policy hurts drivers who take on expenses out of pocket to work, only to be told that they have been fired with no just cause or way to appeal.
Uber is a tinder box. I spent almost 2 hrs yesterday in a big LA Uber Hub. I saw driver after driver dealing with being deactivated, some with some very very sad stories, & the customer service specialists really doing nothing for them. /1
— Nicole Moore (@nicoemoe) June 21, 2019
Sign the Petition!
Take Action! Sign the Petition to Mayor Bill de Blasio and City Council Speaker Corey Johnson asking them to support our campaigns for an End to Unfair Deactivations, a Living Wage, and a Raise for All!
Campaign Background
On July 18, 2019 NYTWA members rallied on the steps of City Hall to present the Drivers’ Demands of a Raise for All, Job Security, and Livable Incomes to the TLC. We formally submitted our Rulemaking Petition to the TLC that they are required by law to respond to within 60 days! One of our key demands in our petition is Job Security for App drivers by ending unfair deactivations without notice, cause, or appeal. We want the TLC to support our campaign as we push the City Council to pass a just cause law.
“Deactivation” is a Silicon Valley word that Uber, Lyft, Juno, and Via use when they fire a driver. We have already received reports of deactivations from hundreds of drivers where they are deactivated with no warning, and are given no way to appeal the Company’s decision when they call, email, or visit the office. Most of the time, drivers are deactivated without a “just cause,” or a legitimate reason for keeping the driver from working. Sometimes the deactivation is based on just one complaint and we know that drivers are also deactivated when it is the passenger, not the driver, who did something wrong.
Uber, Lyft, Juno, and Via’s deactivation policy is cruel. We believe that it the Companies do this because they have oversaturated the streets with too many cars and know there is not enough work to go around. But the drivers shouldn’t be the one to suffer because of these Companies’ greed. This is why we are calling on the City Council to pass a just cause law. This means that Uber, Lyft, Juno and Via would not be allowed to deactivate without a just cause or legitimate reason. We want the law to allow deactivated drivers to file a complaint with the city who would investigate the deactivation case to see if it was for an unfair reason. If the company deactivated the driver unfairly, then the driver should be entitled to get their job back, with back pay!
We need the TLC to show their support for the just cause law. At the TLC Public Hearing on April 25, over 25 NYTWA members testified, including our App drivr members who urged the TLC to look into unfair deactivations. Because of our testimonies, the TLC said they would start to seriously investigate this issue. We also need them to support the City Council just cause law!
NYTWA Demand: Provide Job Security for Uber-Lyft-Juno-Via drivers from Unfair Deactivations! Stop the Companies from firing us without notice, cause, or appeal!
Our Demand to the City Council
The City Council must pass a “just cause” law. This means that Uber - Lyft - Juno - Via would not be allowed to deactivate (another way to say you are fired) without a just cause. The law would allow deactivated drivers to file a complaint with the city who would investigate the deactivation case to see if it was for an unfair reason. If the company deactivated unfairly, then the driver is entitled to get their job back, with back pay!
Our Demand to the TLC
The TLC must support the “just cause” law.
The TLC must regulate the Companies’ contract with drivers. Uber hasn’t issued drivers a new contracts since 2015, and the contract doesn’t inform drivers of their basic rights like out-of-town rates, or policy on deactivation. We demand that Uber and other App Companies need to put in writing when and why they can deactivate drivers, and the TLC must make sure the Companies follow the contracts.
Fill out our Deactivation Intake Form!
If you have been Deactivated by Uber - Lyft - Juno - Via help us report your deactivation to the TLC by clicking the button below! Join the hundreds of drivers who are keeping up the pressure on the App Companies!