SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
After a period of consideration, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has decided that Uber is a transport service, just like any other taxi company. There is lot to say about Uber's use of untrained, non-professional drivers and other abusive practices.
This discussion has been archived.
No new comments can be posted.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) Declares Uber a Transport Service
|
Log In/Create an Account
| Top
| 62 comments
| Search Discussion
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
Cum tacent, clamant. When they are silent, they shout. -Cicero
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday December 20 2017, @07:51PM (2 children)
You are neglecting the drivers. No regular employer can handle workers just showing up when they feel like it, including taking unannounced vacations that could last months or years, but Uber handles that sort of chaos automatically - which incidentally is a strong indication that Uber drivers aren't employees by the legal definitions since they don't have to show up for work to stay Uber drivers. This is a huge departure from the taxi/limo for hire models you mention.
(Score: 2) by Grishnakh on Wednesday December 20 2017, @09:01PM
That depends on the definition of "employee" in that particular jurisdiction. There's other industries where workers just show up "when they feel like it", that's nothing new. Uber/Lyft do handle that more gracefully and automatically than older industries (where they might not be given a job that day if too many other people showed up), but not all employers have employees who show up consistently. People who hire day-laborers are a good example here. But this probably doesn't disagree with you: those people who hire day-laborers aren't hiring W-2 employees, having to file IRS forms for them, having to pay FICA taxes for them, etc. (And this is all assuming you're in the US, laws in EU are different of course.)
(Score: 2) by isostatic on Thursday December 21 2017, @12:19AM
Most minicab firms round where I live are owner operators. They pay a "radio" fee, and get to keep most of the fares. They don't want to drive, not a problem (although they may have to give their radio back).
Uber is no different