Some Lyft, Uber drivers to strike Thursday at MSP Airport
MINNEAPOLIS — If you need a ride to or from the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport Thursday, you may have to ditch the rideshare apps and call a friend, drive yourself, or take the Metro Transit Blue Line.
Members of a public Facebook group for rideshare drivers in Minnesota say they plan to turn off their apps from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m.
RELATED: Walz vetoes rideshare wages bill after Uber threatens to halt operations outside Twin Cities over it
The group is fighting for better pay and safety protections, and to stop account deactivations.
In May 2023, Gov. Tim Walz vetoed a bill that aimed to raise wages for rideshare drivers across Minnesota. That same day, Walz signed an executive order to launch a committee to research the issue further.
Walz's veto came after Uber and Lyft threatened to cease operations in Greater Minnesota.
"They're independent contractors and I think there's no doubt about it, there's got to be some protections. There's gotta be minimum wage, there's got to be protections on how they get deactivated," Walz told WCCO last May. "So I'm in agreement with them. I don't believe the vehicle that passed the legislature at the very end was the vehicle to do that."
RELATED: MSP Airport expands, relocates Terminal 1 rideshare pick-up zone
Then in August 2023, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey vetoed a similar measure passed by the City Council after Uber and Lyft made threats to pull service from Minnesota's largest city.
New York and Washington have passed laws to boost pay and protections for rideshare drivers. New York City and Seattle have also passed laws at the municipal level.
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