I recently hit my 100-day mark as the interim president of Drivers Union, and I wanted to share some of the things we’ve already been able to accomplish together.

I get to speak with drivers every day, and I’ve gotten lots of feedback on what people appreciate about their union and what they think can get better. I’m committed to listening, and to keeping drivers updated about what I’m working on and what our union is doing for our community.

Here are some of the big things we’ve been able to do since I started serving as interim president in January:

Huge wins in deactivation and legal support for drivers

• Almost $1,000,000 in checks to drivers from Uber, Lyft, Via, and HopSkipDrive
• More than 4 dozen drivers back at work (the total is now over 2,140)
• Brought on new legal staff and streamlined our processes to get cases moving faster

Protecting & expanding driver rights

• Announced legislation in Portland that would require Uber & Lyft to pay drivers 80% of every fare, and kicked off that campaign with a driver rally
• Started a campaign for permanent shelter at the SeaTac Airport lot (Sign the Petition here!)
• Signed up 725 more Washington drivers for Paid Family Medical Leave
• Sent more than 2,000 emails to Oregon lawmakers on driver issues
• Publicly released a report covering almost 1,000,000 King County trips that showed policymakers our market is oversaturated and Uber & Lyft need to stop onboarding new drivers
• Protested outside Uber’s engineering offices in Seattle to raise awareness about the flooded market

Fighting robotaxis

• Blocked two robotaxi industry bills in two different states (WA & OR) that would have legalized robotaxis
• Shared with Washington lawmakers a petition against robotaxis with signatures from more than 1,000 drivers and organizations representing more than 600,000 people
• Organized a powerful Oregon labor coalition to fight new robotaxi rules proposed in Portland

Improving communication and opportunities to meet together

• Great turnout for a Puget Sound TNC driver membership meeting with around 100 Seattle-area drivers participating at DU offices
• Uber Black car driver meeting to address specific issues and their ongoing campaign for fair vehicle rules
• Two Eastern Washington driver outreach meetings, in Spokane & Tri-Cities
• Taxi meeting where drivers met directly with city and county regulators to get questions answered about new payment processing rules
• Started sending monthly email updates to keep you up to date
• Got driver voices into news coverage in the Seattle Times, KING 5 news, KOMO news, KGW 8 news, FOX 12 news, KOIN news, KATU, Yahoo news, Geekwire, the Rideshare Guy, and more

Staying connected to our community

• Participated in the Washington State Labor Council’s AI summit to discuss driver needs and rights in an AI economy
• Won an award from the Economic Opportunity Institute recognizing our union’s work on Paid Family Medical Leave
• Joined a labor action at SeaTac airport with fellow unions representing workers there, calling on the Port to treat workers fairly
• Attended community events with partners like Housing Development Consortium, Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, and Chinese Information & Service Center
• Marched in Seattle and Portland May Day actions for immigrant and worker rights
• Created an annual Drivers Union member scholarship for drivers and their children
• Met with Seattle FIFA World Cup organizers to ensure driver voices are heard in the transportation planning around the games