Rideshare strike planned by drivers over low wages Wednesday

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Uber and Lyft drivers planning to strike nationwide Wednesday calling out working conditions and payment.

Drivers in several major cities plan to join in. The premise is supposed to be mutually beneficial - extra cash for the driver, with convenience and competition for the rider. 

Back when Jack Janigian started with Uber, he says the process worked. 

"For the last five years every single move they've made has been at the detriment of the driver," Janigian said. Back in 2014 he was making about $2.20 a mile with Uber taking 20 percent. Now he's making about .75 cents with Uber still taking its cut. 

He says it is simply not worth doing anymore when you factor in certain costs. 

"They think the only expense is gas but that's not true," Janigian said. "You've got wear and tear on your car, you've got insurance and the transfer of risk."

So with that in mind, the drivers are hoping to organize and send a message. A strike is planned for Wednesday asking drivers to turn off the app for a while. 

Here in Detroit, drivers plan to meet up at the airport. But Janigian sees a problem. 

"Uber does a good job of segregating their drivers from one another" he said. "I've been driving since 2014 and I run the largest Facebook group of drivers in metro Detroit, yet we have no idea how many Uber drivers there are in metro Detroit."

The movement gained some support nationally with presidential candidate and Sen. Bernie Sanders tweeting about it. But Janigian isn't sure that it will be enough.

"The reality is there are enough desperate drivers out there so when drivers get off the road, they will think there is more opportunity for me to be out there," Janigian said.

FOX 2 stopped by the Uber Greenlight Hub on Ten Mile and Coolidge. Workers didn't want to comment on camera but said they didn't think the planned protest would bring about any real change. 

"Without a true unifying of the drivers there is no way to really do that," Janigian said.

The protest is set to happen one day before Uber goes public and experts predict it will make $90 billion dollars.