Uber drivers left New Yorkers out in the cold Wednesday — refusing to work on one of the rainiest days of the season.
As many as 2,000 angry drivers staged a strike, shutting off their phones and putting the brakes on pick-ups to protest “low pay” and “unfair policies,” they said.
“Uber has become like Walmart. Drivers now make less than the minimum wage when we do the math,” said Abdoul Diallo of the newly formed Uber Drivers Network, which opposes new lower fare rates set by the company.
The high-tech livery-service firm recently slashed passenger fares to compete with car services such as Lyft, Gett and regular yellow cabs, a move that drivers say takes money out of their pockets.
Some Uber drivers claimed fares — and their paychecks — had been chopped 25 percent in recent months.
Other drivers said they make less than a living wage, just $7 to $12 an hour after expenses and fees — far less than the $25.79 an hour Uber promises drivers can make by joining its fleet, protesters said.
Drivers began complaining that Uber was taking them for a ride back in July, when the company temporarily launched its less-than-taxi-rate Uber X service.
In late September, Uber extended those cuts permanently — outraging drivers.
Uber treats drivers like private contractors, saddling them with insurance, gas and vehicle expenses but the company has total control over fares.
As many one-fifth of the Uber’s 10,000 drivers in New York went on strike over the policy and pay rates on Wednesday, passing out fliers instead of working.
Drivers could have spent the day cashing in on the company’s “surge pricing” scheme, in which rates spike during bad weather and other times of peak demand.
An Uber executive who asked not be identified by name claimed the striking drivers are “a minuscule subset of partners around the world.”
Uber drivers’ pay has spiked 11.8 percent an hour since October 2013, the executive said, and they end up making more because of higher demand fueled by less expensive fares.
But that just adds up to a longer day for drivers, workers claim.
“Uber makes billions on the backs of drivers. We own the cars, we pay for gas, we pay for maintenance, we suffer the depreciation, and we take all of the risks,” one protest flier proclaimed.
Uber spokesman Josh Mohrer claimed the strike didn’t impact New Yorkers looking for a ride, saying there were “normal supply levels.”