14 DAY TRIAL // The drivers of Facebook’s shuttle busses are planning to form a union in order to get the company to give them more rights.
While these shuttles drive Facebook employees to and from the company’s Silicon Valley headquarters, many of them say their pay is so low that they can barely afford to live in the area, the New York Times reports.
It’s not just the lousy pay that is getting all these people worked up, but also the long hours. Many complain that they start work at 6 AM and finish at 9 PM, which is 15 hours later, more than any person should work in a given day.
Some of the drivers are looking to get representation by the Teamsters union, who, in turn, has written a letter to Mark Zuckerberg, the billionaire Facebook CEO and co-founder.
Teamsters officials for Northern California are asking Zuckerberg to press the shuttle bus contractors to bargain with the union on behalf of the 40 drivers assigned to Facebook’s employees.
“While your employees earn extraordinary wages and are able to live and enjoy life in some of the most exclusive neighborhoods in the Bay Area, these drivers can’t afford to support a family, send their children to school, or, least of all, afford to even dream of buying a house anywhere near where they work,” the letter reads, signed by Rome Aloise.
Aloise goes on to compare the situation to a time when noblemen were driven in their coaches by their servants.
Facebook is just the start
Of course, Facebook isn’t directly employing these people, but even so, it should probably be taking some steps to make the situation better. Furthermore, the situation isn’t limited to Facebook alone. It seems that Teamsters are trying to also organize drivers for Google, Apple and other companies that set store in Silicon Valley.
The hope is that after the Facebook issue is settled, they’ll manage to get the others to comply as well and to offer better payment packages for everyone involved.
On the other hand, Jeff Leonaudakis, president of Loop Transportation, the shuttle bus contractor, said many Facebook drivers earn $18 to $20 (€14.3 to €15.9) per hour, which they believe is more than fair.
While this is obviously a sensitive situation, it’s unlikely that the problem stems from Facebook’s unwillingness to pay more. After all, this is just a handful of people in its entire company, which counts many more employees.