Uber driver how does it work

The National Labor Relations Board released a memo saying Uber drivers are independent contractors, not employees. Drivers and activists dispute the classification, arguing they aren't afforded the freedoms that contractors have. The memo was released after Uber's disappointing initial public offering last week. The National Labor Relations Board on Tuesday made public its opinion that Uber drivers should be classified as independent contractors versus full-time employees who are eligible for benefits and other protections. Labor activists called it a "bogus" decision that does not reflect the true nature of drivers' obligations to the ride-hail giant, which went public last week. Uber, which lost $3 billion in 2018 alone, operates on a business model that hinges on drivers being classified as independent contractors, absolving the company of the employer healthcare, pension and other benefits costs that would be associated with employing millions of drivers. The NLRB's memo, written … [Read more...] about Uber drivers are independent contractors, not employees, says National Labor Relations Board

“We’re woke. Our community is woke, and the US population is woke.” That’s how Lyft’s president John Zimmer described the company this week in an interview, at a time when ride-sharing arch-rival Uber is experiencing a public relations implosion, with allegations of systemic sexism, harassment and an arrogant disregard for regulation. But just how “woke” is Lyft? Is it really a more ethical company than Uber? Or a wolf in (woke) sheep’s clothing? Uber’s litany of scandals has handed Lyft a huge opportunity to position itself as the warmer, fuzzier alternative – one that Lyft has seized through a series of tactical announcements. Last week the ridesharing company revealed that passengers had doled out more than $200m in tips to drivers; Uber does not allow passengers to tip drivers. This week, Lyft announced plans to allow passengers to round up their fare to make a donation to charity. Lyft maintains that it’s simply … [Read more...] about Is Lyft really the ‘woke’ alternative to Uber?

Is Uber the worst company in Silicon Valley? The taxi app company has proved to be one of the most aggressive of the new generation of tech startups – showing a willingness to take “disruption” to new heights. Governments, states, taxi drivers, tax authorities, rivals, even blind people – all have come up against Uber and lost. On Monday, the company stepped it up a gear when it was revealed that at least one senior executive at Uber had considered a smear campaign against one journalist who has had the temerity to question the company’s ethics. At a private dinner last week at Manhattan’s Waverly Inn, Uber’s senior vice-president of business, Emil Michael, suggested the company could spend “a million dollars” to hire “four top opposition researchers and four journalists” to “help Uber fight back against the press” by looking into personal lives of reporters who write unflattering stories about the company, … [Read more...] about Is Uber the worst company in Silicon Valley?

The Information Commissioner's Office has fined Uber £385,000 over failing to protect its user data. Around 2.7 million UK customers had private information stolen by hackers in the attack. The ICO says that Uber suffered a series of "avoidable data security flaws" which exposed customer data to be accessed and downloaded from Uber's cloud-based storage. The data included full names, email addresses and phone numbers. The attack worked by attacking Uber's website. Using previously-compromised username and password pairs the hackers flooded the site until they found matches. The hackers were then able to access Uber's data storage, where they downloaded the data. Hacks like this are a reminder to use different passwords for every site you use, but ultimately until literally everyone does that this sort of attack will be viable. Uber failed to disclose the breach to customers and paid the hackers $100,000 to destroy the data. It wasn't just customers affected either, around 82,000 … [Read more...] about Uber fined £385,000 for avoidable security failures after hackers hit millions

KOLKATA: A city-based model was allegedly dragged out of an Uber cab and molested by a group of men in south Kolkata in the early hours of Tuesday. The Uber driver was also assaulted by the miscreants. The woman, who works “with the Media and Entertainment industry”, was coming back from work with a colleague when the car was allegedly attacked by a group of 15 bike-borne men near Exide Crossing. The men dragged out the driver and beat him up.  The victim ran across to nearby Maidan Police station across the road, requesting an officer to help. The officer initially refused to act stating that the incident comes under the jurisdiction of a different police station, but later decided to help. However, the miscreants pushed the officer and ran away.  After deciding to pursue the matter with the police in the morning, the victim and her colleague along with the Uber driver turned towards home.  While dropping off the colleague, the victim noticed six men riding … [Read more...] about Kolkata model allegedly dragged out of Uber, assaulted by group of men; 6 held so far

NEW DELHI: Under fire from the authorities for not paying service tax, online cab service Uber has passed the buck on to drivers or owners registered with it as members. The company, which has an India subsidiary, Uber India Systems Pvt Ltd, has agreed to provide the authorities with information about its member drivers. This implies that cab drivers working under the aegis of Uber may have to register with the service tax department, pay tax and file returns every month. It could also affect the company’s margins if it decides to absorb the tax burden by cutting its commission. "They have submitted that liability to pay service tax lay with cab drivers. They have agreed to provide information about their cab members," said a department official in Mumbai privy to the development. The probe against the company initiated by the Mumbai service tax authorities looks set to expand now. The department had asked the local entity’s officials to furnish details about the … [Read more...] about Uber passes service tax burden on to cab drivers