SAN FRANCISCO Drivers for ride-hailing companies Uber and Lyft went on strike in cities across the country Wednesday, demanding higher pay and better working conditions.

Thousands of drivers were expected to participate in the strike, as well as rallies and pickets, organized by local driver groups in at least 10 cities nationwide , including New York, Washington, Philadelphia , San Francisco and Los Angeles .

In LA, driver group Rideshare Drivers United is calling for drivers to turn off apps for 24 hours, from midnight Tuesday to midnight Wednesday, as well as attend a noon rally Wednesday at Los Angeles International Airport. In New York , drivers turned apps off from 7 to 9 a.m. Wednesday and then some 300 drivers rallied outside Uber and Lyfts offices in the city around midday, per organizers with the Independent Drivers Guild.

In San Francisco, dozens of drivers and supporters blocked the street in front of Ubers headquarters downtown, with people carrying signs reading Uber: Pay drivers a living wage and FAREness for drivers. As cars drove by, many honked in support including some with Uber and Lyft stickers in their windows.

After I did my taxes, I was operating below minimum wage, said 35-year-old Mostafa Maklad, who is an organizer with Gig Workers Rising and has been driving for Uber and Lyft for the past four years. Maklad studies at City College of San Francisco during the day and drives at night, pulling 40- to 50-hour weeks.

They dont offer us benefits or health care or insurance and they dont even pay us enough to afford paying that for ourselves, he added.

Maklad struggles to afford housing in San Francisco and currently lives with six other people in a two-bedroom apartment.