Thread by @GigWorkersRise

3 months ago Steve was at work. It was 11pm. He was driving in Oakland en route to pick up a Lyft passenger. Out of nowhere a car crashed into him. Airbag exploded. The car was a write off. Steve’s neck was in pain & he had a ‘Nissan’ logo bruise on his arm, from the airbag.

Steve called Hertz, who he was renting the car from. No help. He looked everywhere to find the Lyft roadside assistance # & finally found it. They don’t make it easy. Later they told him he wouldn’t be covered as his app wasn’t on. It was. He was en route to pick up a passenger.

In the heat of the moment he posted an update on the Gig Workers Rising forum sharing with drivers he was stranded on the side of the road by the Grand Lake in Oakland, needed to go to hospital and Lyft and Hertz were not helping.

40 miles away Carlos was driving for Lyft in San Jose when he saw Steve’s update. It was the end of his long shift and he was about to head home the long drive to the Central Valley.

Instead he turned around and went to help Steve.

Steve couldn’t believe it when Carlos showed up. By then he’d been waiting on the side of the road for 3+ hours.

Steve, originally from the Bay, had been pushed out to Antioch & didn’t have family nearby to call.

Carlos picked him up and brought him to the hospital in Antioch where he had a CT scan and X-ray.

Think about this: Drivers with few resources show up for each other in the middle of the night, while companies with vast resources go out of there way not to be there for drivers.

This act of solidarity for Carlos to be there for Steve is powerful and inspirational.

When we asked Carlos why he did it, he told us:

“Steve would have done the same for me.”

The car wasn’t picked up til 10:45am the next morning. All night Steve was on the phone pleading with Hertz to pick it up as he was terrified if something happened to it he’d be held responsible. He didn’t get to sleep until noon. 

This was all 3 months ago.

Steve now has hospital bills of over $5,000. He’s still making calls trying to get the insurance of the guy who crashed into him to cover it. He’s already sent photos of the car twice.

Hertz charged him for 2 days rental after the accident. Lyft has done nothing. He couldn’t drive for 5 days after the accident. He was still in pain after 5 days but couldn’t afford to take another day. He still has pain in his neck and headaches.

He hasn’t been to the doc to follow up as he’s no medical insurance.

“I also have high blood pressure. The tablets only cost $20 for a 3 month supply but I don’t have the money to go to the doctor to get a prescription.”

Steve used to work in civil service. He had to stop three years ago because of an injury he suffered on the job. He’s now 51 and in the past two years has given 14,000+ rides. After the IPO he got a $1,000 bonus from Lyft, every cent of it went to car repairs.

He loves driving. “I fell in love with the human race.” Before he started he had suffered from depression but meeting new people every day brought him out of it. He wants to keep driving but he can’t afford it anymore.

At first it was going well but when Lyft dropped rates in 2018 he had to dig into his savings to keep going. Then they dropped rates again over the holidays & it’s been a spiral since.

He’s driving 60+ hours a week but can’t get himself out of debt.

He pays a company called Maven Gig $400/wk to rent a car from them. It used to be $250/wk. The rental + gas and his expenses are now over $2,000 a month. No matter how much he drives he can’t make it work.

Steve’s credit is shot so he’s speaking to some predatory loan companies to purchase a car. He might get one for $500 a month. He’s looked at the Uber car rental program called Fair, and that’s cheaper to begin with but they ask for a $500 deposit which he doesn’t have.

“There’s a huge psychological aspect to what’s going on. I keep thinking that when others hear my story will blame me for allowing this to happen. I’ve tried to get back on path, but the last two years have been tough. I got divorced. I’m losing connection with my 3 children.”

Steve is one of the thousands of drivers struggling to make ends meet. He is working on his resume & got a suit from a nonprofit in Oakland for $12 to wear at job interviews.

He needs $1,500 to help dig himself out of this hole. Please support if you can: gofundme.com/f/ky45b-a-litt…

Before driving Steve worked at the civil service where he did physical labor and he always told himself: “If I am stronger and work harder than the guy next to me, I’ll be ok.” This is what capitalism trains us to believe, to act as individuals in this cut throat society.

When Uber and Lyft repeat the talking point about how they offer drivers “flexibility”, we must be unequivocal: It is morally wrong and unjust for drivers not to have a union. Not to have a living wage. Not to have medical insurance.

We must resist capitalisms framing and stop acting as individuals against one another. If we come together we are stronger.

Support Steve in his time of need: gofundme.com/f/ky45b-a-litt…

Steve sent us this text:

"I am both stunned and deeply grateful for your support. I never expected so much kindness.

I can’t believe it’s gone above the limit. I was asked about raising it further, but I know so many other people need help that I cannot ask for more."

"Anything further that I receive will go toward taking time from driving so I can job hunt. I will also respond to each and every donor as time allows. Because of this fundraiser, I am dedicating today to spending worry-free time with my children. That is a gift you’ve given me."