Many immigrants in New York go to taxi through Uber and Lyft: how profitable is such work

This article is based on a story by Adalgisa Piero-Diarra, an Uber and Lyft taxi driver from New York. In addition, she is the secretary of the Taxi Drivers Union of New York, reports Insider. Next - from the first person.

I started as a taxi driver in 2013 and joined Uber and Lyft in 2019. I am now a member of the Taxi Drivers Union of New York, a group that advocates for the rights of taxi drivers in New York. Here are what I consider to be the worst parts of this job.

1. Low wages, especially in the face of rising gas prices and inflation

We struggle to pay bills and support our families. We are in an economic crisis, the prices of everything have risen, including gasoline. It was really hard. We often make a lot less money due to higher gas prices. This makes us work longer hours, so we get very tired and stressed. There is less time for family, and this is affecting many people. Most customers think that the service fee goes exclusively to the driver, but this is not the case.

2. Lack of health insurance

Many drivers do not have the resources to deal with their health problems. Or they don't have the health insurance that traditional full-time jobs offer. I consider myself lucky because I have insurance through my husband's work, but many people can't cover it.

Drivers who don't have health insurance for themselves often can't cover it for their families, so it's a big burden on their shoulders.

3. Lack of resources for mental health

Mental health issues are indeed on the rise due to the pandemic and all the upheaval we are seeing around the world. Everyone is stressed and trying to make ends meet, and we often don't have access to even affordable health care.

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4. Crime and violence

As drivers, we must be aware of the violence in the city. Taxi drivers and delivery workers are the targets of crime. Due to the fact that we have to carry cash with us, we are a target for attacks and robberies. And even if we don't have cash on us, people assume we do. This puts us in danger.

5. Road traffic

Day after day, my biggest annoyance is traffic jams. Anyone who lives in New York knows that this is one of the biggest problems in the city.

Yes, the city is trying to ease congestion, but delivery trucks, school buses, the bus line, and more are only making things worse.

6. Getting fines

We always get fines for various reasons. If we drop off a client where there is a “No Standing” sign, and the policeman sees this, he will give you a fine.

Or if someone crosses the street when you turn and you have to stop abruptly, the policeman may interpret this as the driver interfering. This is another penalty ticket, which complicates our work.

7. Lack of support from delivery apps

We are supposed to partner with the apps we work with, but we don't. Application executives make a lot of money thanks to us, but we need to be in this together.

They should not have a better income than drivers when we do most of the work. Yes, they help us through the app and the system. But they get a significant share of the money, while we pay for gas, insurance, and so on.

8. Lack of union support

If we succeed in forming a union, then we can come together and get the voice we need to express our demands. We want to be able to speak to decision makers at both the city and application levels to address some of these issues.

Through the Taxi Drivers Union of New York, we want to unite all taxi drivers so that we have a better income and better working conditions.