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Gerald Montgomery, a 51-year-old UberX driver, has been arrested on suspicion of second-degree burglary. He was reportedly trying to break into the Denver home of a woman he had just driven to Denver International Airport, and was found carrying "burglar tools". Uber says that Montgomery had passed all background checks, and the man had no criminal history in Colorado according to Colorado Bureau of Investigation records. Montgomery has been "deactivated" from the UberX platform and the Denver victim's fare was refunded.
The UberX platform requires drivers to operate their own vehicles and is less regulated than taxi services. Rides are covered by commercial insurance. An investigation [autoplay video] by NBC Los Angeles last year found that Uber has employed "screened" drivers with long-term felony records.
The company continues to attract unwanted attention around the globe; Uber's headquarters in Amsterdam has been raided twice this week, and an Uber employee has been arrested for obstructing the investigation. The investigators were looking for evidence that the company is continuing to operate UberPop, an urban ridesharing service deemed illegal by a Dutch court.
(Score: 2) by gnuman on Monday April 06 2015, @01:56AM
I don't know what it's like where you are, but most Taxi drivers are effectively or actually self employed, whether traditional or Uber.
Where I live, most taxis licenses are owned by large taxi companies. Yes, there are independents too. But here is the difference.
1. taxis have agreed upon price, not random prices
2. supply of taxis is such that everyone can make a living
If taxi driver can't make a basic living driving their taxi, then they have to get money from another source. Therefore they are automatically more likely to turn to crime - there is only so many hours in a day. Give a man a normal wage, and it is much less likely they will step on the wrong side of the law (I know, general statement, but it applies to taxis as any other job).
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 06 2015, @06:50PM
Where I live, most taxis licenses are owned by large taxi companies.
And are the taxi drivers paid hourly employees of the large taxi company? Not anyplace I've ever lived. The driver 'leases' the cab and license for their shift and are independent contractors. Unless you know it's 100% different from that, that's what you can assume is happening.
Yes, there are independents too. But here is the difference.
1. taxis have agreed upon price, not random prices
2. supply of taxis is such that everyone can make a living
In theory, yes. In practice, taxi drivers eat their downtime and the preset prices are no guarantee the driver will actually make a living.
If taxi driver can't make a basic living driving their taxi, then they have to get money from another source. Therefore they are automatically more likely to turn to crime - there is only so many hours in a day. Give a man a normal wage, and it is much less likely they will step on the wrong side of the law (I know, general statement, but it applies to taxis as any other job).
True. But "normal wage" has a lot of elasticity in it, and not all "normal wages" are "living wages."
(Ex-taxi driver, here... Absolutely loved it, absolutely couldn't make a sustainable living at it.)