Gold Dome Bill Proposes Control over Uber and Lyft (Atlanta: insurance, credit card)

[ATL Golfer]

Originally Posted by red92s

Uber needs to sack up and treat it's drivers and actual employees, not contractors. Uber claims it's just "licensincg the mobile platform" to drivers, when in reality their involvement goes significantly deeper.

That is the beauty of their platform. Driver's can come and go as they please. Need a little extra cash, turn your app on and become a driver for a few hours.

Maybe they segment their drivers. Lump some into full-time and others into part-time.


Uber is a response to what the market wanted. Traditional taxi cab companies need to adapt or just die off all together.

I don't get why they get gov't protection. If I start a burger joint and it fails, I can't go to the gov't asking them to shut down all other burger joints so people will be forced to come to mine. The idea of such is ludicrous.

Sorry cab companies. Your product is now inferior. Close up shop or adapt instead of wasting your final dollars on a witch hunt that will not succeed. The good news is, your drivers can now work for Uber. They can even re-locate to any city they want and have the same job. They can turn in that p.o.s. dirty cab and actually be held to standards on a car that they buy themselves (and can write-off).

I don't drink n drive (often). There are times where I have 3 drinks say over 3-4 hrs and I drive. Not any more. I would have never considered an unreliable cab. Uber I take without hesitation.

The only thing that irks me about Uber is when they charge a premium at peak times. I can see 10 uber cars ready and waiting on the map, but their is a shortage of available vehicles???

[red92s]

Originally Posted by ATL Golfer

That is the beauty of their platform. Driver's can come and go as they please. Need a little extra cash, turn your app on and become a driver for a few hours.

Maybe they segment their drivers. Lump some into full-time and others into part-time.


Uber is a response to what the market wanted. Traditional taxi cab companies need to adapt or just die off all together.

I don't get why they get gov't protection. If I start a burger joint and it fails, I can't go to the gov't asking them to shut down all other burger joints so people will be forced to come to mine. The idea of such is ludicrous.

Sorry cab companies. Your product is now inferior. Close up shop or adapt instead of wasting your final dollars on a witch hunt that will not succeed. The good news is, your drivers can now work for Uber. They can even re-locate to any city they want and have the same job. They can turn in that p.o.s. dirty cab and actually be held to standards on a car that they buy themselves (and can write-off).

I don't drink n drive (often). There are times where I have 3 drinks say over 3-4 hrs and I drive. Not any more. I would have never considered an unreliable cab. Uber I take without hesitation.

The only thing that irks me about Uber is when they charge a premium at peak times. I can see 10 uber cars ready and waiting on the map, but their is a shortage of available vehicles???

Uber hides behind "employee" classifications that pre-date the concept of the "sharing economy" that they help popularize. They claim they only provide an app and are just a technology company with an app, but in reality are much more involved.

If Uber manages to win the current lawsuits about how they classify their "workers", expect other companies to take notice. The concepts of things like sick time, healthcare, and workers comp will continue to erode.

[onemanarmy]

Originally Posted by red92s

Uber hides behind "employee" classifications that pre-date the concept of the "sharing economy" that they help popularize. They claim they only provide an app and are just a technology company with an app, but in reality are much more involved.

If Uber manages to win the current lawsuits about how they classify their "workers", expect other companies to take notice. The concepts of things like sick time, healthcare, and workers comp will continue to erode.

Let us not make perfect the enemy of good. I ride Uber exclusively, since I don't own an automobile. The vast majority of drivers are the unemployed, retired, and under employed. Drivers can quit and rehire themselves at will, if you want Uber to start providing benefits and mandate work schedule you essentially have reinvented an inefficient product that already exist, yellow cabs.

[red92s]

Originally Posted by onemanarmy

Let us not make perfect the enemy of good. I ride Uber exclusively, since I don't own an automobile. The vast majority of drivers are the unemployed, retired, and under employed. Drivers can quit and rehire themselves at will, if you want Uber to start providing benefits and mandate work schedule you essentially have reinvented an inefficient product that already exist, yellow cabs.

So if Uber started having to classify drivers as employees, they'd all of a sudden require me to look up a phone number for a dispatcher, wait 45 minutes for a 15 year old crown vic to pull up, try to explain to the driver where I'm going using hand signals, then argue about tip and change when I arrive?

Uber has done a lot of really good things that have been transformative in the industry of personal transportation. Being popular and "disruptive" does not get them a free pass on treating employees equitably.

[jsvh]

I talk to Uber / Lyft drivers when in the car and most of them love it. They want the freedom to make money on their scheduled. Not be an employee that is locked into a 9-to-5 type obligation.

[onemanarmy]

Originally Posted by red92s

So if Uber started having to classify drivers as employees, they'd all of a sudden require me to look up a phone number for a dispatcher, wait 45 minutes for a 15 year old crown vic to pull up, try to explain to the driver where I'm going using hand signals, then argue about tip and change when I arrive?

Uber has done a lot of really good things that have been transformative in the industry of personal transportation. Being popular and "disruptive" does not get them a free pass on treating employees equitably.

If Uber hired you as an employee, they would need to add a payroll, HR, and a host of over departments and host of other overhead issues with employees which would drive up cost, passed directly to the consumer. Now as an employee, if my car is malfunctioning is that sick leave? , Oh wait I'm required to work a set schedule, but I work 9-5 m-f. I'm retired, but I now have to work 12am-4am.

The beauty of the Uber system is it allows drivers to come and go as they please as well as supply riders the ability to do the same. If drivers want better rates, tips, etc..... They are in direct opposition to what riders like myself are looking for, which is cheap reliable alternatives to yellow cabs.

[red92s]

Originally Posted by onemanarmy

They are in direct opposition to what riders like myself are looking for, which is cheap reliable alternatives to yellow cabs.

So let yellow cabs shed the restrictions,oversight, and regulation that makes it an uneven playing field. That's all they really want: to play by the same rulebook as the competition. They'd like Uber playing by their rulebook, but I bet they'd settle for playing by Uber's as an alternative to the current arrangement.

[ATL Golfer]

Originally Posted by red92s

So let yellow cabs shed the restrictions,oversight, and regulation that makes it an uneven playing field. That's all they really want: to play by the same rulebook as the competition. They'd like Uber playing by their rulebook, but I bet they'd settle for playing by Uber's as an alternative to the current arrangement.

Fair points.

I just don't see how Yellow Cab and the like survive under the Uber model. They are late to the dance at this point and they know it. Only way to get on an even playing field in my eyes is to impose regulation vs strip it.

[sedimenjerry]

Originally Posted by ATL Golfer

I don't get why they get gov't protection. If I start a burger joint and it fails, I can't go to the gov't asking them to shut down all other burger joints so people will be forced to come to mine. The idea of such is ludicrous.

If you had to apply for all the licences, serving permits, taxes and deal with HR responsibilities while the other burger joint could just start serving food without doing the same you'd be crying foul, no?

Originally Posted by red92s

So let yellow cabs shed the restrictions,oversight, and regulation that makes it an uneven playing field. That's all they really want: to play by the same rulebook as the competition. They'd like Uber playing by their rulebook, but I bet they'd settle for playing by Uber's as an alternative to the current arrangement.

Exactly , Uber and Lyft don't have to play by the same rules. If anything they're the ones getting Gov't protection by not being required to jump through the same hoops as taxi cabs.

[bigstick]

Originally Posted by ATL Golfer

That is the beauty of their platform. Driver's can come and go as they please. Need a little extra cash, turn your app on and become a driver for a few hours.

Maybe they segment their drivers. Lump some into full-time and others into part-time.


Uber is a response to what the market wanted. Traditional taxi cab companies need to adapt or just die off all together.

I don't get why they get gov't protection. If I start a burger joint and it fails, I can't go to the gov't asking them to shut down all other burger joints so people will be forced to come to mine. The idea of such is ludicrous.

Sorry cab companies. Your product is now inferior. Close up shop or adapt instead of wasting your final dollars on a witch hunt that will not succeed. The good news is, your drivers can now work for Uber. They can even re-locate to any city they want and have the same job. They can turn in that p.o.s. dirty cab and actually be held to standards on a car that they buy themselves (and can write-off).

I don't drink n drive (often). There are times where I have 3 drinks say over 3-4 hrs and I drive. Not any more. I would have never considered an unreliable cab. Uber I take without hesitation.

The only thing that irks me about Uber is when they charge a premium at peak times. I can see 10 uber cars ready and waiting on the map, but their is a shortage of available vehicles???

Try Lyft it is much better IMO,,,