By Zak Vescera, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter THE TYEE
You may have met Kuljeet Singh. He might have driven you to your aunt91裸聊视频檚 birthday party, picked you and your friends up after a late night at the bar or got you to work on a snowy day.
He would have been behind the wheel, one of thousands of people in Metro Vancouver driving for Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and a host of other businesses. While few solid figures exist, the provincial government estimated last year that as many as 11,000 residents worked in ride-hailing, and 27,000 worked for food delivery companies.
You probably wouldn91裸聊视频檛 have recognized Singh last week, when he roared into a microphone in front of roughly 100 people on a drizzly day, demanding better treatment for gig workers like him.
Dozens of drivers sacrificed time, and therefore money, to stand outside Labour Minister Harry Bains91裸聊视频� constituency office in a Surrey strip mall. They took turns speaking in Punjabi. A white car pulled up, the trunk packed with samosas and chai. At one point they began chanting: 91裸聊视频淪hame, shame, Harry Bains.91裸聊视频�
This group of often faceless workers has become a mobilized force in British Columbia, and a thorn in the side of companies and politicians alike.
In November, Bains introduced legislation on gig work that he said set a new national precedent. It includes stipulations on minimum pay, transparency, the right to join a union and workers91裸聊视频� compensation coverage if drivers are involved in an accident on the job.
Many details of the new regulations are still being hammered out. The Ministry of Labour said they would be introduced this year but has no exact timeline.
91裸聊视频淢inistry staff continues to engage with all of the groups who will be affected by the changes, including app-based workers, companies, labour organizations and others,91裸聊视频� Bains said in a statement. 91裸聊视频淚n fact, meetings with app-based ride-hail and food delivery workers are taking place this week.
91裸聊视频淭hese new standards and protections are coming after the regulations are finalized this spring, with some time allowed for companies to implement these important changes.91裸聊视频�
Some drivers, like Khushwinder Samra, say the regulations announced so far don91裸聊视频檛 go far enough to address low earnings for workers.
Another driver, Vicky Sharma, argues the bill leans in favour of companies instead of workers or consumers.
91裸聊视频淭here is no transparency. You never know how much a customer is paying or how much you are getting,91裸聊视频� Sharma said.
Gig workers are not easy to organize. They have no common work site. The job is transient you can be driving for DoorDash or SkipTheDishes or Lyft one day and leave the next.
Singh and Sharma said drivers began to meet each other at the Vancouver airport, often while waiting for passengers. Talk turned to the downturn in their wages.
Gradually, they built up a WhatsApp group, which today boasts more than 800 members. It91裸聊视频檚 a small fraction of the number of people who work on such apps in the Metro Vancouver area, but more than enough to organize a protest.
Singh and other drivers are routinely quoted by media writing about new gig economy legislation. When Bains unveiled the bill, Singh and fellow driver Raj Gill were there with him.
At the time, Singh was divided on the legislation. He liked the fact it called for transparency about what customers pay 91裸聊视频� a big frustration for ride-hailing drivers who suspect the company takes a bigger slice of their earnings than promised.
But over time Singh and other drivers in this tight-knit group have decided the bill does not go far enough.
91裸聊视频淥n a slow day, sometimes we91裸聊视频檙e making less than minimum wage,91裸聊视频� Samra said.
Samra began driving for Uber in January 2020, using it to supplement money he was making working for Canada Post.
At the time, Uber and other ride-hailing companies had just begun operating in B.C. Samra was making good money and switched to driving for Uber full time.
Then 91裸聊视频渆verything fell apart,91裸聊视频� Samra said. As more drivers joined the app, he was getting fewer trips. When he did pick them up, they paid less. Other drivers have similar stories. Parvish Kumar left his gig at a taxi company to begin driving for a ride-hailing company, he said, because the pay was originally better. But now, his pay has fallen.
91裸聊视频淲e have to work up to 14 hours to make a decent wage. I start at 6 in the morning and I finish up at 6 or 8 at night,91裸聊视频� Samra said. He has considered finding another job but says he feels stuck.
91裸聊视频淲hat they do is they trap the driver and the customer by initially providing good incentives. People leave their other full-time jobs. And then they play their hand,91裸聊视频� he said.
Bains91裸聊视频� bill would set a new minimum wage for drivers like Samra, ensuring they receive 120 per cent of minimum wage, or just over $20 an hour.
But that rate applies only to the 91裸聊视频渆ngaged time91裸聊视频� when a driver is actively on the move. And many drivers say they spend a significant chunk of their time waiting or searching for new rides.
91裸聊视频淚f we91裸聊视频檙e working 80 hours, we91裸聊视频檙e spending 40 hours sitting and waiting for rides. We91裸聊视频檙e not paid anything for that 40 hours,91裸聊视频� said Sharma.
Drivers also have complaints that don91裸聊视频檛 fall squarely in Bains91裸聊视频� responsibilities. Some, for example, say they need dedicated drop-off and pickup points in Vancouver, just like taxis. They say parking tickets from that municipality are a constant problem.
And some have argued Metro Vancouver should follow Toronto by placing a cap on the number of ride-hailing drivers allowed to work. A City of Vancouver spokesperson said the number of licences for such vehicles grew from 15,886 in 2021 to 25,532 in 2023. That growing number of drivers 91裸聊视频� and their frustration 91裸聊视频� is one of the reasons this group has become so mobilized and vocal.
Drivers aren91裸聊视频檛 alone in their criticisms. Bains91裸聊视频� bill stipulates gig workers would be employees under the government91裸聊视频檚 employment law. But in the same stroke, the bill also excludes them from some benefits guaranteed by that law, like sick pay. Sussanne Skidmore, president of the BC Federation of Labour, said in a previous interview with The Tyee that she worries those kinds of carve-outs set a dangerous precedent.
What is certain is that the gig workers are no longer faceless drivers. They91裸聊视频檙e here, organized 91裸聊视频� and angry.
91裸聊视频淭he legislation they bring is given by Uber, actually, so basically that91裸聊视频檚 what we91裸聊视频檙e asking him to change. We want legislation that favours drivers and customers,91裸聊视频� Sharma said.
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