YORKTOWN, Va. (WAVY) — An Uber Eats driver believes she is seeing more competition thanks to the government shutdown.
Since December 22, 800,000 federal workers have been furloughed as Congress has failed to pass a spending bill that includes President Trump’s requested $5.7 billion for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Around half of them were off the job, cutting off some services and cutting off ways to pay bills.
“I understand why Trump is doing what he is doing, I do,” said Sharon Snow. “But he is hurting us. He is not just hurting the government people he is hurting everybody. And it’s really scary.”
Snow has never worked for the federal government but said her job as an Uber Eats driver has been hit hard by the shutdown.
Since September, the single mother of a special needs child has used the online food ordering and delivery platform in order to make extra money.
“And I was impressed with it,” Snow said. “I could handle this, this was good … but in mid-December, I just didn’t have no orders. And I didn’t understand what was going on.”
Snow, who originally thought the holidays led to lower than usual business, now believes furloughed federal workers are becoming Uber Eats drivers while demand is also falling.
“I heard about the shutdown, and I was like ‘ooohh’,” Snow said. “They can’t get a job because they already have job, but they are not getting paid.”
It’s a domino effect according to Snow. She is seeing less money and the restaurants are not getting the same order volume as people don’t have the money to spend.
“I’m suffering and I’m not even a government employee. I’m Just Uber Eats,” Snow said.
10 On Your Side reached out to Uber Eats to ask if there was any truth to Snow’s theory that more drivers have signed up during the furlough.
“We’re declining to comment here,” a spokeswoman said.
