Seattle – As Uber announces plans for a $20 billion stock buyback today, new data in Washington State shows the company’s corporate “take rate” (the amount of each fare they keep as a commission) skyrocketing from 2019-2024, even as the company blames rising prices on external costs and local regulations. In a report released today, Taking Seattle for a Ride, researchers at Drivers Union analyzed driver tax data covering more than 1.4 million trips in that five-year time period. Findings include: Read more

HB 1332, our legislation fighting back against unfair vehicle removals from higher product classes (like Uber Black and Comfort) passed the Washington State Senate yesterday by a vote of 27-21! Read more

Drivers Union is a worker organization representing gig workers in Washington State, primarily Uber and Lyft drivers. For years gig workers have had their rights and their input into their working lives restricted. Drivers Union is one of the first organizations in the nation to provide a legislative and legal framework for drivers to have a true and legitimate voice in their work lives. Drivers have fought long and hard to establish these rights and are looking for staff who are committed to fight for social and economic justice for their communities.   Drivers Union is seeking a temporary full-time Staff Attorney who can provide a full range of support to the organization and the workers that Drivers Union serves. Read more

Last Thursday, our driver community and allies came out in force to celebrate the many victories we've won in 2024: The nation's first inclusion of rideshare drivers in a statewide Paid Family and Medical Leave program America’s first cap on excessive commissions for taxi drivers The extension of the Workers’ Compensation Death Benefit to ensure that drivers families are eligible for support should tragedy strike  Read more

Washington’s rideshare drivers now join the vast majority of the state’s workers who are covered under Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML). This means that whether a driver is kept off the road by serious illness or injury, or experiencing the joy of welcoming a new child into their family, they’ll now be eligible for up to 12 weeks of Paid Family and Medical Leave. The hard work, solidarity, and dedication of the driver community has made wins like this possible; Drivers Union looks forward to the opportunity to facilitate the driver enrollment process to enable rideshare drivers to access this cost-free, groundbreaking benefit. Read more

For a feeling of security on the road and protection from unfair deactivation, many rideshare drivers turn to dashcam technology. To help make this option easier and more affordable, Drivers Union has partnered with Display Ride for a special offer only for Drivers Union members. Click here to join DU today get your exlusive DisplayRide discount! Read more

Thanks to your advocacy through Drivers Union, UBER and LYFT drivers in Washington can be eligible for unemployment benefits when they're not able to work. Read on to understand how Unemployment Insurance can work for you, and click here for support filing an Unemployment Insurance claim. Read more

The Seattle City Council voted unanimously to pass PayUp but are now allowing delivery app companies to present “solutions” to a problem they created with junk fees intended to punish Seattlites and build pressure to roll back worker rights and pay protections. And instead of taking meaningful driver input, the Council has allowed Drive Forward, an UBER founded and funded trade association, to act as a fake representative of delivery drivers while promoting policies to cut their pay. Read more

Governor Jay Inslee has signed into law HB 2382, Washington’s groundbreak legislation to expand death benefits under the state workers compensation system for the families of rideshare drivers who are killed while working. The legislation, sponsored by Representative Liz Berry and Senator Rebecca Saldaña, expanded existing protections for UBER and LYFT drivers who lose their life on the job. Previously, if a driver was killed on the job while waiting for their next ride, surviving family members would be ineligible for the survivor death benefits afforded to all other workers as part of the Workers’ Compensation program. With the signing of HB 2382, when tragedy strikes, families will now be eligible to receive the survivor benefit regardless of whether they have a passenger in the car or are waiting to receive their next trip. Read more

Last week, UBER CEO Dara Khosrowshahi was granted stock options valued at over $136 million as UBER stock prices and corporate profits continue to soar, with the company now valued at over $120 billion. Meanwhile, drivers across the country experience an ongoing erosion of earnings as the company increasingly moves towards algorithmic pay discrimination, using complex technology to offer each driver the absolute minimum fare that they’ll accept. Read more