Move fast and break things. Break laws, steal, cheat and stuff. It's OK if you're big enough and are a "startup."
Uber Plans Millions in Back Pay After Shortchanging NYC Drivers
11–20 of 234 posts
Re: Uber Plans Millions in Back Pay After Shortchanging NYC Drivers
#12Earlier quoted context omitted.
Uber is the physical incarnation of the saying "don't ask for permission, ask for forgiveness".
"Move fast and break things (and shortchange everyone in the process)" We're so sorry (again)
Vs. "We have an idea for a disruptive app. Let's do this 'the right way' and make sure we have the approval of the industry we are disrupting and local government before we get started"
-- apps that never come into existance
Re: Uber Plans Millions in Back Pay After Shortchanging NYC Drivers
#13This is not a hard error to identify (seems like one that's harder to make, if Uber employs qualified accountants), and given the number of Uber drivers who carefully and calculatingly join Uber as a way to become financially independent, it's hard to believe that no one discovered the problem and then complained. But maybe someone inside Uber felt more confident in prioritizing this issue after the public shitshow that Uber has been eating this past few months.
Re: Uber Plans Millions in Back Pay After Shortchanging NYC Drivers
#14Uber drivers could go on strike from Uber and still earn by driving for LYFT. They could demand what ever they want.
Re: Uber Plans Millions in Back Pay After Shortchanging NYC Drivers
#15This company is absolutely astounding. The objects you hold up as ideals says a lot about the culture of your environment and its values. It is extremely disappointing that Uber is considered a crown jewel of Silicon Valley.
It is extremely disappointing that Uber is considered a crown jewel of Silicon Valley The common refrain I hear is "they're better than taxis" and more and more evidence is mounting against them (at the corporate level) that suggests: no, they really aren't.
I think you're both right and wrong.
Uber is better than taxis for riders, and worse than taxis (in some ways) for drivers.
Also consider that some Uber drivers couldn't realistically become taxi drivers in their spare time, and perhaps some of them would prefer to be underpaid by Uber rather than not working at all.
Re: Uber Plans Millions in Back Pay After Shortchanging NYC Drivers
#16That's a huge "bug" not to notice for presumably a long time. I recently had a Lyft driver in NYC talk to me about how he quit uber after doing the math on what his fare should have been when a passenger told him how much they were being charged. He brought it up to uber and then quit when they didn't fix it. Anecdotal story but seems extremely relevant now
What your driver was talking about may not be a bug/math error like stated here. After rolling out guaranteed whole-ride pricing (as opposed to metering) Uber is allegedly testing algorithms to bid different prices for rides to both driver and passenger. i.e., passenger sees a fare of $X, while driver sees a fare of $Y, where presumably $Y Passengers' fares can be "optimized" by estimating a specific passenger-trip's…
It would not be abhorrent if it were the only source of income for Uber, which would basically be earning the bid-ask spread.
Adding fees on top of that, though...
Re: Uber Plans Millions in Back Pay After Shortchanging NYC Drivers
#17Earlier quoted context omitted.
"Move fast and break things (and shortchange everyone in the process)" We're so sorry (again)
Vs. "We have an idea for a disruptive app. Let's do this 'the right way' and make sure we have the approval of the industry we are disrupting and local government before we get started" -- apps that never come into existance
Amazon? Spotify? Square? Grubhub? Robinhood? And probably lots more. You can have respect for people and laws and still succeed.
Re: Uber Plans Millions in Back Pay After Shortchanging NYC Drivers
#18This company is absolutely astounding. The objects you hold up as ideals says a lot about the culture of your environment and its values. It is extremely disappointing that Uber is considered a crown jewel of Silicon Valley.
To be honest I'm not so sure its still considered a crown jewel. The negative PR has been snowballing for awhile now.
Uber's work place shenanigans have been a open secret for a while now. People either didn't believe the rumors or thought it wouldn't effect them in their role. Most people didn't care about the rumors because of the Stock packages they gave out. Now that IPO's has been delayed again, all the bad press, massive losses, IP theft, Uber F'ynees, etc people don't think it's guaranteed pay day that it used to be perceived as. A lot of my peers have been contacted by Uber recruiters lately, half of them straight up said no, the other half ignored their linked messages.
Re: Uber Plans Millions in Back Pay After Shortchanging NYC Drivers
#19This company is absolutely astounding. The objects you hold up as ideals says a lot about the culture of your environment and its values. It is extremely disappointing that Uber is considered a crown jewel of Silicon Valley.
I swear it feels like the next story we are going to hear out of Uber is how Travis had to discreetly dispose of a rhino carcass by dumping it in the bay...
Re: Uber Plans Millions in Back Pay After Shortchanging NYC Drivers
#20What I find interesting is how is this localized to one area? Is it an error in NYC tax law calculations or something? Seems that they are talking about the base fare calculations and you would think those would be somewhat general across several areas. Even if they run multiple algorithms some other city must be running something similar with the same error?