Rideshare drivers rally in support of bill for better pay

NEW HAVEN — Area rideshare and delivery drivers renewed pressure in support of a bill that would establish minimum standards for them, ahead of a committee meeting slated for Thursday in Hartford.

The rally by about 20 drivers in front of Union Station Wednesday morning called on the General Assembly’s Labor and Public Employees Committee to pass S.B. 1180.

The bill would provide them with a minimum pay per trip, receipts to both workers and passengers, and other fees incurred during trips such as tolls and mileage pay for going out of state. As drivers can’t pick up passengers outside Connecticut, the bill also aims to have the state negotiate with nearby states to allow drivers to work there.

James Bhandary-Alexandra, a lawyer who is part of Connecticut Drivers United, when asked about the likelihood of the bill passing out of committee and the floor said that anything was possible, but said lawmakers reacted positively when they heard stories from drivers during a public hearing earlier this month.

Jesenia Rodriguez, a driver from New Haven, said Wednesday she wanted transparency from the companies and better pay, noting her wages went down three times last year.

“Inflation is crazy,” she said. “How am I supposed to support my family?”

Rodriguez said she got into the gig economy six years ago when she was a student at Gateway Community College and looking for a flexible job. Before she would go to a class at around 10 a.m., she said she would have made more than $150. But now, she only makes about $137 for six hours.

Mourad Hassar, a six-year Lyft driver, showed an earning statement he received from the company. In 2022, he took on 4,191 rides with a total of 57,117.43 miles. His gross earnings were $104,819.53 including $96,906.43 in ride payments and the rest in non-ride earnings such as bonuses.

About $46,821 was taken away as platform fees, service fees, third-party fees, express pay fees and tolls, according to the statement Hassar showed.

“Look how much they took from us,” Hassar said.

The bill has been opposed by multiple rideshare companies and organizations including Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and Instacart.

Josh Gold from Uber said Connecticut drivers earned an average of $34.47 per utilized hour and spent an average of less than 20 hours a week on the app.

“By implementing the proposed per-minute and per-mile standard, riders in Connecticut will see an average increase of 158% per trip,” Gold said, noting it would be “an extreme increase” that would disincentivize customers and ultimately could result in fewer payments for drivers.

Brendan Joyce, a public policy manager at Lyft, cited similar concerns regarding an increase in fares for customers, mentioning its contribution to the state’s economy and the public’s safety in driving people home from bars.

“Ultimately, drivers would suffer the most under SB1180’s commission pay structure,” she said, “by dramatically limiting rider demand with price sensitive customers, many of whom are already making tough decisions on where to cut back due to the historic increase in inflation over the last year.”

Lyft also noted that the downward impact from the potential changes disproportionately would affect people of color.

Alex Johnson from Connecticut Drivers United responded to that during the rally Wednesday, saying, “this community is not a token for politicians to use.”

“If they really want to show it, they really need to pay it,” Johnson said.

Joseph Addei, a driver, said when these apps call them “partners,” he doesn’t feel like that because if they’re actually partners, they need to be at the table with the decisionmakers to talk about changes.

Rajon Lewis, another driver, said rideshare drivers are the “backbone of transportation in Connecticut,” emphasizing something has to be done to ease the “unfairness” drivers are facing.

“We need to see some reform,” Lewis said.