During a recent visit to San Francisco, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and his wife, Jane, sat down with California Gig Workers Union drivers for a discussion about robotaxis like Waymo, the experience of being a gig driver, the importance of forming our union and what new technology like AI means for workers around the world. 

Sen. Sanders has been sounding the alarm about how unregulated and unchecked expansion of Big Tech and Big AI could be catastrophic for working people and so have CA Gig Workers Union Drivers! 

We spoke with Bernie about how drivers have been ground zero for these issues and the reality of your work being driven by an algorithm. 

Robotaxis are a new threat to public safety and driver livelihoods, but they’re following the same playbook as earlier companies like Uber and Lyft – using our public roads and our lives as testing grounds for ways to make themselves richer. 

We told the senator about the long hours, unfair deactivations, and steadily decreasing pay that drivers have been fighting against for more than a decade through our union. He left us with some words of encouragement. 

“We’ve got to stand together. The most important thing you’ve done, I think, is to form a union. That gives you a voice,” said Sen. Sanders. 

Check out the video of Sen. Sanders’ Visit: