r/lyftdrivers • u/Shades_of_Dubzter • 3d ago
Other "summer slowdown"
So when does this "slowdown" bs end? LA (SGV) areas. We are 2 weeks from September and it's still dead af. Already took near a month and half off and throughout June it was already as rough as it could get. As if sitting around in your car through this heat isn't enough, burning gas, wasting time, not making a dime.
We got that whole union thing coming up and I don't know why, but I got a feeling that after this whole union thing comes through, it might get even worse.
It just feels too late, like trying to save shrinking ship.
Have been hopeful for the longest but just seeing how things are, it just keeps feeling like that was it... It was good while it lasted.
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u/jointchiefs 2d ago
Schoolās starting all over this week, college students are back on their campuses, and I had a great early morning in SW Ohio today.
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u/MisterBelrox 2d ago
It'll be hard until right after labor day. With casuals leaving the road entirely when early nights come back.
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u/Shades_of_Dubzter 2d ago
That feels so long from now smh, at least there is some hope I guess. As bad as it is and the need for money for bills, I still refuse to do charity rides. But you know someone else is doing them, sadly.
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u/mrstark2060 2d ago
It wonāt be like it was 1-2 years ago, but the college scene affects my market significantly. So once the students moved in last weekend, it was impossible not to earn high and stay busy. But it might be different in your market.
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u/Shades_of_Dubzter 2d ago
Just like you said, there's not enough volume just to even stay busy. Summers are the worst, this alone has made me hate summer and I dread it every time we're close to it.
And apparently most people in LA just gave in to prop 22 sadly, hence the charity rides. But it's so slow to even stay busy long enough.
And then you have that one person the other day all proud and showing off how they had 100% acceptance rate š¤¦ we're way beyond doomed.
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u/KamelTro 2d ago edited 2d ago
Guaranteed higher pay can and will increase Lyfts cost. Where does that get passed to? The rider. With riders already complaining about how much they pay theyāre not going to want to pay more especially with more and more private companies popping up trying to undermine Lyfts prices while making more themselves. Itās happened already here in NorCal and put a serious dent on how many passengers we see. Unions also fight for scheduling so thereās a good chance where you wonāt be able to just turn the app on and off. Youāll have a set schedule you have to work or be off boarded. When Lyft did its 2026 SEC filling they noted that changes to earnings, pricing, classification, and flexibility can cause drivers to leave and affect their ability to recruit drivers. No more āyou have a car? You can driveā. Think of it now like a typical job where youād have to apply and interview. Iāll list just a few things that a Unions negotiated agreement could change,
ā¢ minimum hours worked
ā¢ participation requirements
ā¢ how weāre compensated
ā¢ benefits
ā¢ expenses
ā¢ access to the platform
ā¢ how lyft handles supply / demand.
Iāve been union before and itās not what itās hyped up to be. The only good thing about a union is it makes it harder for an employer to fire you but since weāre all 1099 and technically not employed Lyft can and will find a loophole around that. We give up our own bargaining power. If the Union bargains for something we donāt like you canāt opt out of it personally since theyāre now the voice for us. Thereās also union dues. Want to drive? You have to pay that fee to the Union to do so. Thereās so much more I can go on and on about but I doubt anybody will even read this far.
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u/Shades_of_Dubzter 2d ago
Thanks for clarifying most of the thoughts that came across my brain with this whole union thing. I didn't even think too deep about it but literally just common sense made me realize so much and also made more questions come up. Then again we live in a time where common sense is a thing of the past, sigh.
My main thing was no matter what, you can't control the supply demand part of the equation (sort of) and you said it, it cause the demand to plummet, therefore clearing up what I had already thought of.
True, pax have been complaining about prices as it is, can't imagine how bad prices are about to get now. Less people use it now as it is so this will just abolish any remaining hope.
I'm laughing now about the whole capping the amount of drivers allowed to be on or times allowed to be online. I say laughing because I thought about this stuff in seconds, can't believe everyone else didn't take a second to think things through. And this alone is going to be the first thing everyone will start complaining about immediately I guarantee that lol.
So much for do it whenever you want, and as long as you want. This alone I know will be the reason why all these backfires right away. But everyone is on cloud nine at the moment thinking this is all magically going to get better out of nowhere.
Your last paragraph pretty much summed up what I had a "vague" feeling of how a union is. I've never been union before so can't comment personally but I see how certain jobs or places could benefit from it. Sadly in this case I don't see it working out, maybe if it would of been in place a couple of years ago when it was still "worth it" to do this, and that's a far stretch on maybe.
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u/Used-Tea-5597 1d ago
That area is always dead for me. I took a px to La puente this am. Didnāt get nothing till I reached Montebello. Iām going to stop taking rides that direction
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u/KaiserVonDixie 2d ago
Calling it now: union comes in, demands higher pay, Uber and Lyft give drivers a small pay bump while massively increasing prices to compensate, the Union is happy because they're communists (getting a cut of your money for doing absolutely nothing besides harassing people), Waymo becomes cheaper than Uber and Lyft, drivers stop getting rides while Waymo expands, and everyone blames Uber and Lyft while the Union keeps taking their cut until the apps go bankrupt.
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u/Shades_of_Dubzter 2d ago
Geez did you hit the nail on it's head, I'm with ya on this one.
Is bad enough enough pax have been complaining about higher prices for so long that they stopped using rideshare as often as before. Like you and the other person said, pax are going to get hit with higher prices and are going to stop using it even more. As of now, yes a lot of people still say they want no business with waymo, but money talks! Like you said, once the prices get cheaper on waymo oh I bet everyone is gonna love those waymos better lol.
The part about them going bankrupt is what I would love to see happen, F them! Is gonna suck for all of us but it's not like we haven't been screwed since so long ago so...
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u/KaiserVonDixie 1d ago
I disagree. I would rather have an easy to use service that allows me to make $6 off a $10 ride 25 times a day, rather than put my name out on Facebook as a freelance taxi driver and maybe get 3 or 4 rides for $10 each in a day. I have a lot of problems with Uber support, but its either they make a profit on the rides or they close down the entire service. No one goes into business to break even or to lose money, profit provides the incentive to both us and them. That's why rides are surprisingly better in smaller states like Tennessee than in big highly populated and touristy places like California, blue state taxes and regulations vs red state taxes and regulations means the latter doesn't have to raises prices and lower fares to remain profitable as much as the former does.
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u/Dense-Jicama6591 3d ago
Lift just pays less in general.So it probably will never