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An estimated 800,000 Californians drive for companies like Uber and Lyft, and starting this year, they'll get the chance to form a union and collectively bargain for better pay and working conditions. It's the second state after Massachusetts to give drivers these new rights. CapRadio's Laura Fitzgerald has more.
LAURA FITZGERALD, BYLINE: It's a Friday afternoon at San Francisco International Airport. Sangar Khan sits on the edge of his trunk in a parking lot where he and hundreds of other drivers wait to pick up passengers in the airport's virtual queue.
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FITZGERALD: Khan lives in Modesto, more than two hours away, but says he drives for Uber and Lyft multiple days a week in the Bay Area, where he says he can make more money.
SANGAR KHAN: I live three nights in my car in San Francisco, and I online, like, daily, 18 hour or 19 hour.
FITZGERALD: When he works in the Bay Area, he leaves his wife and three young children at home.
KHAN: Every day, they're missing me. Yeah. It's hard for me and for them.
FITZGERALD: Khan says one of his major complaints is that Uber tends to charge customers a lot for rides and pay drivers a small cut.
KHAN: I think the union is good for drivers, and maybe they pay more.
FITZGERALD: But the process of forming a union could take a long time. The earliest drivers could vote to unionize is May 1, but it's possible it extends beyond that. Uber and Lyft did not agree to an interview for this story, but in a written statement, Uber explained its support for expanding union rights was tied to a separate bill reducing their insurance costs. That slashed the amount of insurance companies have to have for underinsured drivers.
LORENA GONZALEZ: Look, Uber needed something.
FITZGERALD: Lorena Gonzalez is the president of the California Federation of Labor Unions and a former California state lawmaker. She says the company should be watched closely as the unionization law goes into effect.
GONZALEZ: They wanted a reduction of their insurance, and so I think it was a strategic decision on their part to say we need - or we want - to reduce our liability if an Uber driver kills somebody or hits somebody. And in exchange, we'll agree to this process.
FITZGERALD: California's Republican lawmakers opposed the new law. Republican state senator Tony Strickland argued not all workers should be treated as employees.
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TONY STRICKLAND: When we keep doing these bills and assume that all the jobs in our market or for health care in a family of four, we're now cutting out a lot of jobs for young people who just want to get out and get workforce experience.
FITZGERALD: Strickland also says he thinks a ride share union would drive up costs for riders.
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STRICKLAND: At a time when we have an affordability crisis here in California that we all talk about, here's another example of a bill that moves forward that will make things less affordable for everyday California residents.
FITZGERALD: Uber and Lyft say prices will actually go down for riders, since lawmakers agreed to also pass the bill reducing their insurance costs as part of the deal. This process could result in higher wages for drivers, but that's not the only thing on their minds as the new law takes effect. Mohammad Yaqoobi takes a break as he waits next to his minivan for his next ride at the San Francisco airport. He's been driving for Uber and Lyft for the past eight years, but now he's worried about what the adoption of self-driving cars will mean for his job. Autonomous vehicles are everywhere in San Francisco. Yaqoobi also says he's worried about losing business.
MOHAMMAD YAQOOBI: That's a little bit scary because we have a rent. We have a lot of things going on, and we have kids, family. So that's why a little bit stressful for me. That's the thing, yeah.
FITZGERALD: Yaqoobi says he thinks a union could offer more job security and higher pay. He's already signed up.
For NPR News, I'm Laura Fitzgerald in San Francisco.
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