Striking Uber-Lift Drivers See 2/3 Income Loss, Suicides: Uber's $90B Built On Anti-Worker Model

[appalachiablue]

(12 mins). 'Gig Economy Drivers Strike: Uber Built $90B Empire on an Anti-Worker, 'Slave' Model. Democracy Now! 5/9/19.

Uber and Lyft drivers in cities around the world went on strike Wednesday to protest low wages and poor treatment of workers just days before Uber’s initial public offering, which could value the company at up to $90 billion dollars.

But while Uber prepares for what could be one of the biggest IPOs in history and executives plan to take home millions, drivers say their conditions are worse than ever.

Drivers in Los Angeles, London, Melbourne, São Paulo, New York and other cities temporarily halted work Wednesday to demand Uber and other rideshare companies like Lyft treat drivers like full-time employees rather than independent contractors, guarantee a livable income and end deactivations for drivers without explanation, among other demands.

On Wednesday, striking Uber and Lyft drivers gathered on Wall Street to call out the practices of the ride-sharing companies. Democracy Now! producer Libby Rainey spoke with Inder Parmar, an Uber driver who says he has lost two-thirds of his income as the company has slashed compensation. We also spoke with Bhairavi Desai, executive director of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance. #DemocracyNow #UberStrike

(6 mins) 'The Gig Is Up: Rep. Deb Haaland Introduces Bill to Make Uber/Lyft Pay Fair Share of Taxes,' Democ. Now! 5/9/19.

As Uber and Lyft drivers staged a strike on Wednesday, Rep. Deb Haaland (D-NM) announced legislation that would require Uber and Lyft to pay for drivers’ Social Security and Medicare costs.

Because drivers are considered “independent contractors,” they are currently required to pay Social Security & Medicare costs themselves.

Haaland’s legislation would place that burden entirely on Lyft, Uber, and other multinational corporations employing large numbers of so-called independent contractors in the gig economy. Rep. Deb Haaland said in a statement “The gig is up.” She joins us from Capitol Hill. #DemocracyNow #UberStrike

Democracy Now! is an independent global news hour that airs on nearly 1,400 TV and radio stations Monday through Friday. Watch our livestream 8-9AM ET: https://democracynow.org

[whathehell]

1. Good on the Strikers -- and Representative Deb Haaland!

[appalachiablue]

4. Very glad to see this, esp. the organization & lawmakers.

[whathehell]

5. Yes, absolutely. n/t

[PoliticAverse]

2. "who says he has lost two-thirds of his income as the company has slashed compensation."

The company has lost billions of dollars which it obtained from investors and went to people working for Uber like this driver.

That subsidy is ending as the company is being sold to people who likely will want Uber to start making money. The prospects for an Uber driver at this point are not good.

Uber is one good app away from not having a business.

[appalachiablue]

3. Uber IPO/WS. Many stories today, U owners will do great, not workers.

(The Guardian) Excerpt: "Uber is seeking a valuation of $82.4bn, less than the $100bn it was hoping for, but still making it one of the largest IPOs of all time, and one of the most hotly anticipated stock market listings in the tech world since Facebook made its Wall Street debut seven years ago. The San Francisco-based ride-hailing app is asking investors to pay $45 per share, according to a regulatory filing published ahead of Friday’s listing on the New York Stock Exchange.

At that price, Uber announced, it would raise $8.1bn to fund expansion into new markets and the continued development of expensive projects such as its driverless car and food-delivery divisions. But it had hoped for a higher valuation. Appetite for the stock is thought to have been dampened by the limp performance of shares in rival Lyft, which floated in March and has since lost 27% of its IPO strike price.

Uber has never made a profit – and warned in its lengthy but lightly informative investment prospectus for the float that it may never do so. With investors cautious about its prospects, it settled on an asking price of $45, at the low end of a range it had set of between $44 and $50..."
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/may/09/uber-value-wall-street-ipo-friday