Those planning on heading to the airport for a Valentine’s Day movie moment — chasing a loved one through the terminal with a bouquet of flowers, hoping for a chance at happy ever after — may be in for a bit of delay.

Those less romantic may also experience delays to and from the airport if they are using rideshare apps like Uber and Lyft.

Justice for App Workers — a national coalition of ride-sharing and delivery drivers — announced last week that the more than 130,000 drivers they represent will be going on strike Wednesday, banning rides to and from airports in major cities in an attempt for better wages and safety measures. The group claims it will be the largest organized strike against ridesharing apps for better working conditions.

The cities include Miami, Philadelphia, Chicago and Austin, according to the coalition’s website.

While the releases did not outright say Denver would be involved, the coalition does represent drivers in the state. The Colorado Independent Drivers United union of rideshare drivers also noted that they stand in “solidarity with striking rideshare drivers around the country who are fighting to bring attention to the unsafe conditions, lack of transparency, unfair wages and unstable employment that we face,” in a social media post regarding the national strikes.

“Uber, Lyft and delivery drivers are tired of being mistreated by the app companies,” Justice for App Workers said in a press release. “We’re sick of working 80 hours/week just to make ends meet, being constantly scared for our safety and worrying about being deactivated with the click of a button.”

A spokesperson from Uber noted that the company doesn’t expect any downfall in prices or ride availability during the strike.

“These types of events have rarely had any impact on trips, prices or driver availability and we expect the same (Wednesday),” they said. “That’s because the vast majority of drivers are satisfied – earnings remain strong, and as of last quarter, drivers in the U.S. were making about $33 per utilized hour. We also continue to act on driver feedback, adding new safety features to the app and improving our account deactivation processes.”

The deactivation process has been a point of contention nationwide, including Colorado. Drivers for apps are getting deactivated, and sometimes terminated, based off singular complaints from riders. No contact between the company and the driver are made, just a notification that they have been deactivated.

A 2023 survey of more than 800 drivers in California by Advancing Justice found that two-thirds had been deactivated at least once and a third never got an explanation why from the app.

People of color saw higher deactivation numbers, as well. Sixty nine percent of drivers who are people of color saw deactivations while 57% of white drivers experienced them. 

Lyft announced a “streamlined, in-app button for drivers to appeal deactivation decisions. This new channel gives drivers the ability to provide Lyft with any new or updated information as well as direct access to a specialized support team dedicated to deactivation appeals,” a spokesperson told The Denver Gazette.

“We are constantly working to improve the driver experience, which is why just this month we released a series of new offers and commitments aimed at increasing driver pay and transparency. This includes a new earnings commitment and an improved deactivation appeals process,” the spokesperson added.

Uber also announced an updated process at the end of 2023, allowing for further reviews of false allegations.

To the coalition and Colorado union, this isn’t enough.

In Colorado, the union and various Democrats are pushing for legislative bills HB24-1129 and SB24-075, which ask for rideshare apps and delivery apps, like DoorDash, for transparency for consumers and drivers regarding the amount of payment that goes to the app company and the driver, respectively. 

Regarding deactivation, the bills ask for transparent reasoning as well as reactivation processes. 

The bills continue to see pushback from ridesharing companies over customer privacy and the possible reinstatement of dangerous drivers.

Drivers, as seen by the Valentine’s Day strikes, continue to fight for improved transparency in the industry, one declined ride at a time.