If you travel in liberal circles (and if you’re reading this, you probably do) you probably at least entertained the thought of deleting Uber from your phone last weekend. That’s because, amid the uproar over President Trump’s executive order banning refugees (among other, mostly Muslim people) from entering the United States, came a call to #DeleteUber.
The reasons for the boycott included not only what was seen as some shady, profit-driven maneuvering around protests at JFK airport—basically, the New York taxi drivers’ union called for drivers to boycott the airport for an hour during protests, and Uber responded by removing surcharges to the airport—but also Uber CEO Travis Kalanick’s status as a member of one of Trump’s economic advisory councils. Along with customers deleting the app, the Independent Drivers Guild, a New York-based union representing 45,000 drivers, also launched a petition calling for Kalanick to step down.
As soon as the protests began picking up steam, the company went into damage-control mode, responding to people who deleted the app with an email saying that the ban was “unjust, wrong, and against everything we stand for as a company.” Now, the company seems to be stepping up its efforts even further, announcing that Kalanick has stepped down from Trump’s advisory council.
In a press release, Independent Drivers Guild founder founder Jim Conigliaro, Jr. says, “This is an important show of solidarity with the immigrant drivers who helped build Uber and number over 40,000 in New York City alone. We are heartened that Uber has listened to the drivers and the community on this important issue that is so integral to the promise of the American dream.” Nine out of 10 Uber drivers in New York City are immigrants, according to the IDG.
Of course, this is just one of many complaints Uber drivers have against the company, including steadily falling earnings for drivers as rider fares remain static. Their No. 1 request? That Uber add an in-app tipping option.