Uber and Lyft drivers went on strike on Valentine's Day to demand Saint fare

Commuters in Toronto and other major North American cities may face some disruptions on Valentine's Day as drivers plan to strike in support of more pay.

On X Day, Ride Fair TO Uber, Lyft and other ride-hailing drivers said they will protest poverty pay and company practices tomorrow in three Canadian cities and 44 cities in the United States.

In addition to Toronto, the strike is expected to take place in Vancouver and Winnipeg.

In Toronto, motorists will begin a protest at Nathan Phillips Square starting at 9 a.m. The protesters then plan to march to Uber's headquarters on Bloor Street.

It comes after the RideFair Coalition and the Rideshare Drivers Association of Ontario (RDAO) released a new report, Legal Poverty, on Monday. It found that drivers in Toronto earn just $6.37 an hour, $10 below Ontario's current minimum wage of $16.55.

According to the report, the estimates are derived from company reports and government data and are also verified by driver experience. Additionally, the calculations are similar to gig driver hourly wages in other jurisdictions, such as California ($6.20/hour), Seattle ($9.63/hour) and Denver ($5.49/hour).

“Ninety-six weekly wage reports submitted by Toronto drivers between October 2023 and January 2024 paint a picture of drivers' hourly wages often below Ontario's minimum wage of $16.55 an hour before expenses are taken into account,” the report said.

“After accounting for expenses, none of the 96 weekly pay statements reached Ontario's $16.55 hourly minimum wage; in many cases the drivers lost their money,” he continued.

According to Uber's public disclosure of driver earnings, the median take-home earnings of drivers in Toronto at the end of 2023 was $33.35 an hour.

The term “hours spent” refers to the time a driver has a passenger, but does not include the time drivers are active in the app and waiting for work.

“In Toronto, it is unclear whether Uber's definition of 'work time' compares to paid time (passenger in car – 48 per cent of work time) or active time (traveling to a passenger and their presence in the car -). 60 percent of working hours,” explained the report.

“Choosing the most conservative definition, active time, means that Uber's gross revenue of $33.35 per hour translates into a median revenue of $20.01 per hour worked before expenses.” As this is the median, the drivers' half-hourly earnings will be less,” he added.

Ride-share workers are defined as independent contractors, meaning they do not work for an employer all the time and have the ability to choose their own hours and create their own schedule. However, they are not entitled to employee benefits such as vacation or health insurance.

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