With Southern California gas prices soaring, delivery drivers with Amazon Flex and Uber rideshare drivers plan to rally in Redondo Beach on Wednesday to demand higher per-mile pay rates.
The workers will gather outside an Amazon warehouse and Uber Greenlight Hub on Marine Avenue.
An unprecendented price surge
The protest arrives in the face of an unprecedented price surge that drivers say has eaten into their already low earnings. Fueled by the Russian invasion into Ukraine, the average price for a gallon of unleaded gas in Los Angeles County hit $5.85 Tuesday, up 22% from a month ago and up nearly 50% from a year ago.
Orange County was close behind, with an average price of $5.83, while San Bernardino County’s average stood at $5.73 a gallon and Riverside County averaged $5.74.
The drivers are represented by Mobile Workers Alliance, a driver organizing campaign that’s fighting for higher wages and is looking to unionize the workers. Tim Sandoval, a representative with Service Employees International Union, Local 721, said they desperately need a bump in per-mile rates.
“For now, its just for during the surge,” he said. “But ideally. it would be ongoing.”
Under Prop. 22, drivers who are engaged with passengers are reimbursed at a rate of 30 cents per mile. But that doesn’t include downtime when they aren’t actively with a customer, and IRS estimates put the actual per-mile costs of owning and operating a vehicle at 58 cents a mile. (Photo courtesy of Mobile Workers Alliance)
Under Prop. 22, a 2020 initiative that reclassifed gig drivers as independent contractors, drivers who are engaged with passengers are reimbursed at a rate of 30 cents per mile. But that doesn’t include downtime when they aren’t actively with a customer, and IRS estimates put the actual per-mile costs of owning and operating a vehicle at 58 cents a mile.
Uber to issue per-trip surcharges
In a statement issued Tuesday, Uber said its L.A. drivers earn an average of $37.04 an hour, including tips. The company said it is implementing a 55-cent-per-trip surcharge on Uber rides and a 45-cent-per-trip surcharge on Uber Eats deliveries beginning Wednesday, March 16.
It will last for 60 days.
“This consumer surcharge will apply to each ride or delivery and will vary by location, with 100% going directly to drivers and couriers,” the company said.
Under Prop. 22, drivers largely cover the cost of fuel on their own with little support from the tech giants and they are excluded from receiving paid sick leave, overtime pay, unemployment insurance, access to workers’ compensation and the right to form a union.
The law affords drivers alternative benefits, including a guaranteed minimum wage and subsidies for health insurance if they average 25 hours of work a week.
In August 2021, an Alameda County Superior Court judge ruled that Prop. 22 was unconstitutional under state law, as it limits California lawmakers’ power to include gig workers in the state’s workers’ compensation program and strips the Legislature of its ability to pass laws protecting drivers’ right to organize and form a union.
Khaterine Cote, who has worked as an Amazon Flex driver for nearly two years, said the recent spike in gas prices had eroded much of her earnings.
“I have two young children and I’m a single mom,” the 30-year-old Long Beach resident said. She typically starts her day at 8 a.m. and works 40 to 50 hours a week.
Hector Castellanos, another driver from Antioch who works for both Uber and Lyft, said he’s financially strapped.
“It’s a full-time job for me, but it has become challenging to earn enough money for myself and my family,” he said. “I need a safety net and protection.”