Uber is one of those companies bringing serious innovation to the financial industry as we know it. By effectively bypassing existing regulation and legislation, ride-sharing businesses throw a monkey wrench in the stranglehold governments have consumers. Despite its attractive business scheme, Uber is not as rosy as people would believe it is. In fact, the company is facing a ton of driver lawsuits, as people are far from happy with the meager earnings.
Also read: Digitizing UK Bureaucracy With Distributed Ledger Technology
Uber Holds A Lot of Promise But Fails To Deliver
From a consumer point of view, Uber is an excellent service and a great alternative to cab hailing in general. Not only is it far cheaper to user Uber compared to traditional cabs, but the payment process is a lot more streamlined as well. Plus, drivers will pick you up anywhere you want, whereas cabs have pick=up hubs.
It should come as no surprise to hear how many individuals decided to jump on the Uber bandwagon and make a bit of extra money while driving people around. Even though drivers can not receive tips – it is against the company’s TOS – they do make an excellent income, depending on how much time they put into driving people around.
After the initial hype about Uber had started to wear off, governments around the world started taking a very aggressive stance towards the company and their service. As there is no need for an official cab license when registering as an Uber driver, anyone in the world can hop in a car and transport people from point A to B. This didn’t sit well with the cab drivers, and protests took place throughout the world.
If that wasn’t enough for Uber to worry about, they are now facing several lawsuits filed by their drivers. Various people feel they are not getting a fair share of the earnings, especially when considering drivers have to pay for gas, lease payments, and car repairs on their own accord. Keeping in mind how Uber sets the fares for rides depending on the location, there is a lot of friction between zones.
Furthermore, there is the topic of the minimum wage that needs to be considered. Uber driver earnings fall well short of this threshold, but there have never been any guarantees by the company this could become a full-time job for anyone. Some countries will benefit more from this business model than others, yet the lackluster earnings are a valid ground for a lawsuit.
A Ride-Hailing App For Bitcoin users
To create a fair ride-hailing ecosystem, companies like Uber will have to rethink their business model in the next few years. Even though they are not officially employing anyone, their drivers earn the right to some basic necessities, such as minimum wage guarantees and health insurance.
Bitcoin provides a way out to create a more fair and transparent ecosystem for all parties involved. Up until this point, Uber refuses to work with the popular digital currency. But when push comes to shove, someone else might make a ride-hailing app that only works with Bitcoin, and outcompete Uber in the long run.
Source: Ars Technica
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