Uber drivers in New York City stage 24-hour strike over pay

Uber drivers across New York City are turning off their apps and leaving their cars at home on Monday, as they stage a 24-hour strike in protest over pay.

The strike, running from 12.01am to 11.59pm on 19 November, comes on the same day that an 11 percent pay rise should have gone into effect for drivers on the ride-sharing app.

Instead, drivers are staging a protest outside Uber’s New York City headquarters at 3 World Trade on Manhattan’s Wall Street.

The New York Taxi Workers Alliance, the trade union which organised the protest, is also calling on New Yorkers to boycott the app in solidarity with its workers.

“I can’t believe that Uber did this to us. With all that we do for Uber and then can’t bare to see us get a raise,” one driver said in footage posted on the union’s Twitter account.

“I was so excited about the raise. Uber shattered my hopes,” another driver said.

The protest comes after Uber successfully blocked a scheduled pay rise of 11 percent for drivers in the Big Apple.

The raise – from a base fare of $2.50 to $3 – was approved by the New York City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission back in November and was scheduled to go into effect from today.

But, the Silicon Valley ride-sharing giant managed to put a hold on proceedings, successfully seeking a temporary restraining order from a judge.

Now, the base pay rate will remain set at $2.50 until at least 31 January when arguments can be heard at a court hearing.

“Drivers do critical work and deserve to be paid fairly, but rates should be calculated in a way that is transparent, consistent and predictable,” Uber said in a statement.