Nationwide Uber driver protest held over weekend

SAN FRANCISCO (KTVU) - People living in the Bay Area and all across the country were waiting a little longer for rides this weekend as groups of Uber drivers protest what they call low wages.
Organizers say they hope with the work stoppage will make the company pay attention to their concerns.
At 5 p.m. Friday, during the height of the evening commute in the Bay Area, Uber drivers nationwide were asked to stand in solidarity by turning off their app service for the entire weekend.
"I rely on Uber all the time. In fact, I came in from Napa and I took Uber. So I'll be curious to see how people are going to get around," said Savaria Harris of New York.
"I'll definitely feel it. If you want to get from point A to point B, I go to Uber," said Vineet Pandui of San Francisco.
An organization known as Uber Freedom posted a list of demands on its Facebook page. Among them are raising Uber X fees by 60 percent, adding a tip option and raising the minimum fair and cancellation fee to seven dollars.
A spokesperson for Uber maintained that the protest was having little effect on service and that Uber was continuing to operate as normal in the Bay Area and the more than 300 cities where it operates.
Some customers KTVU spoke with feel the protest will backfire.
"If I have to go use one of their competitors, it's very easy to switch between the apps," said Pandui.
"I could see how it would drive up the demand for Lyft or Flywheel or Sidecar or something like that," said Sarah Gehrki of San Francisco.
It appears she may be right. KTVU cameras observed more taxis, Lyft and Flywheel options on the road than Uber on Friday. The company says with more than 20,000 drivers in the Bay Area, the work stoppage shouldn't have that big of an effect on the app's users.
But throughout the night KTVU, checked the Uber app. Though there were many cars in the area, the surge pricing which is put into place when the demand is high kept changing.
Friday morning, members of Uber Freedom held a small protest outside the company's headquarters. When it came to the work stoppage and protest, an Uber spokeswoman said, "We always welcome feedback from driver-partners."
Uber says the company must be doing something right. It has 327,000 drivers nationwide, more than doubling from 160,000 active drivers in December 2014.
Although the company and drivers are not on the same page when it comes to wages, Uber users say they have no problem with one of the drivers demands of adding a tipping option.
"That's fine. I mean taxi cabs get tips, so I guess Uber drivers can get tips too," says Harris
"Like, I'll have a few dollars and say, 'Here's the tip.' Adding it on I think it might help. But if someone wants to tip, they're going to tip," said Anthony Cho of Fremont.
Uber says the reason there isn't a tip option on its app is because they want their users to have a hassle free experience. Drivers are paid by getting a percentage of each fare. As for the price adjustment, Uber says right now, the more affordable it is, the more people will use it.