Tech Giant Strong-arms Lawmakers, Disregards Public Safety with Political Action Committee

(SAN FRANCISCO) – The following is a statement from Peter Finn, Teamsters Western Region International Vice President and President of Teamsters Joint Council 7, in response to news that Uber plans to spend $30 million in 2024 to influence lawmakers and legislation in California:

“Every Californian should be alarmed that Uber wants to dump $30 million into state politics this year. That sum may be a drop in the bucket for a massive Big Tech company, but make no mistake that Uber is using its dollars to make sure politicians look the other way as it undermines public safety and workers’ rights for the sake of its bottom line.

“Specifically, Uber wants more autonomous vehicles on the road. The company is in partnership with Waymo in Phoenix and could look to California as the next location for driverless Ubers. This is a company with a long history of throwing hundreds of millions of dollars at regulators and elections to get its own favorable public policies implemented.

“The Teamsters Union will be watching closely to see if Uber wastes millions pushing for more dangerous autonomous vehicles in California and fighting common sense legislation to keep our streets safe. The Teamsters look forward to working with California’s elected officials this year to pass Senate Bill 915 to empower local communities to decide if and when autonomous vehicles can operate on their streets.”

Teamsters Joint Council 7 represents 100,000 members in 18 local unions across Northern California, the Central Valley, Northern Nevada. Joint Council 7 members work in freight, delivery, construction, dairy, beverage, food processing, rail and ports, parking, solid waste/recycling, hotels, bus driving, schools, public services, and many other industries.

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