Ride-hailing drivers, including that of Uber, Bolt, LagRide and Indriver, on Wednesday, began a nationwide strike, demanding that ride-hailing companies increase fares by at least 200%.
A typical weekday morning in Lagos is rush hour, a good time
of the day for cab drivers. But this Wednesday, ride-hailing drivers—think:
Uber, Bolt, LagRide, Indriver—are protesting. At the direction of the
Amalgamated Union of App-based Transport Workers of Nigeria (AUATWON),
ride-hailing drivers are following a sit-at-home order until the ride-hailing
companies increase their base fares. The union also has other demands.
According to the National Vice President for Southwest
Nigeria (AUATWON), Kolawole Aina, “Each local government in Lagos State and by
extension, all states in Nigeria will be protesting today at the same time.”
TechCabal also understands that the drivers plan to picket the offices of Uber
in Victoria Island and Bolt in Lekki. “All e-hailing platforms are shut down
from today till Friday,” Aina told TechCabal over the phone. “The riders should
find another alternative,” he said.
AUATWON is hopeful that the strike will not last long. “The
strike may not have to last that long if they (Uber and Bolt) do what we ask in
time,” Somoye Olalekan, the Public Relations Officer for the union, who is
leading the protest in Ifako Ijaiye local government, another location for
today’s strike, told TechCabal. At the time of filing this report, protest activities
have begun in Edo State. Comrade Jolaiya Moses told TechCabal he would join the
movement from there.
Despite the strike action, which is supposed to run till
Friday, I could still find a driver on the Bolt app who was five minutes away.
As with most ride-hailing strikes, enforcement is difficult because many gig
workers need to work daily to survive or make repayments to the owners of cars
or make good on loans. The AUATWON task force understands the enforcement
problem, and in Ifako-Ijaiye, the union is stopping drivers who are working.
The heart of this week’s strike is a demand by AUATWON
asking ride-hailing companies to increase fares by a minimum of 200%. The union
is also asking for a 50% reduction in commission—Uber and Bolt collect a 20%
commission on every ride—and an end to the deactivation of drivers who refuse
to work due to the low fares and attendant unprofitability. The union is also
seeking the recognition of AUATWON as the representative body for their
interests.