For what it's worth, I know a guy who "works" for Uber full time and loves it. He sets his own hours and really doesn't have a boss. He doesn't have much ambition in life besides playing rock and roll. It's a better job than cooking or working the door at clubs. Years of being a good door guy has made him extremely good at handling people in a gentle and pleasant manner, his skills transfered. He's keeps a clean vehicle and knows the town well. He knows when to shut up and how to shoot the breeze. He gets top marks from his "coustomers". It may not be the right job for everyone but it's the right job for some people. It's going to be the best job that some people can find. Uber may not give it's workers the best deal but it's better than many other things that you can do for a living.
Sure he does. 1) He didn't have to buy a medallion. 2) He doesn't have to carry commercial carrier insurance. 3) He didn't need to get a CDL. 4) He "really doesn't have a boss." 5) He pays no taxes to the city. Those four things evolved in the livery industry to protect customers from the liabilities of hopping into a stranger's horsecart and going for a ride. In many ways, the taxi industry has calcified into a throwback from another generation but in many other ways, the impediments to progress engendered in taxi services are those things that account for the externalities of the profession. Uber, for their part, has to pay none of the fees above and gets to split the fares with your friend. It's great! They provide an infrastructure whereby individual practitioners can flaunt the law and earn a stipend on the side. And I do mean stipend: - 62% of Uber drivers are part-time - 51% drive 15 hours or fewer per week - 3/4ths of Uber drivers have been driving for less than a year Fun fact: Uber drivers make about 25% more than cab drivers, on average. Why is that, economically? Why is it that Uber is valued at $17 billion while nobody has ever said "hot damn, I wanna get in the cabbie business?" Did they really crack the code? Or are they just circumventing the protections and tariffs that have evolved to protect the consumer and the municipality over the past 100 years of driving for hire? Good for your buddy... but if he subtracts 66 cents a mile and health insurance, how's he do?
All points well taken. I was mostly just responding to the "slave driver" title. There are plenty of shitty employers, Uber seems pretty far from the worst. Doesn't mean their drivers and the communities Uber serves shouldn't try to get a better deal. I've never used Uber and I won't even consider using them until they can find a way to give handicapped people the same service the cab companies have to.