Update 26 July 2018, Thank you to all the drivers taking part in the special ABC investigation, (instigated by the RSDU) into Uber “upfront pricing” and UberPool. You can read the full ABC article by clicking this link.
Update 28 July 2018, RSDU announcing No Uber, Drivers Log-OFF strike! Monday 6/8/2018 – 7am to 9:30am. Click here for more info.
RSDU continued to receive complaints from angry drivers about upfront fares this week.
The text of Uber’s service Upfront Pricing addendum originally issued to driver “partners” March 8, 2018, clearly indicates Uber are now in breach of contract.
The last paragraph in Uber’s addendum to service agreement reads as follow:
“…Service Fees on Upfront Fares shall be as set out in the applicable Service Fee Addendum. If a User changes the journey, or if the trip takes materially longer than estimated by Company due to traffic or other factors, the Upfront Fare shall no longer apply, but rather the Fare shall be calculated based upon a base fare amount plus distance and/or time amounts and any other applicable fees as set forth in Section 8 of the Agreement….”
As advised in our previous newsletter, RSDU now has overwhelming evidence provided by drivers, clearly indicating this is not to be the case. Many cases of “system” intentional miscalculation, cases of drivers being stuck in traffic for extended periods of time due to an accident or a road closure or driving to destination according to different passenger instructions yet not being compensated for the very obvious “materially longer” changes to the trip.
We have a submission form a driver, forwarding us proof, clearly indicating Uber does not really compensate drivers for unexpected traffic like their contract guarantees, part of Uber’s support staff email to that driver reads as follow:
“…While upfront fares should take into account all the factors that typically affect the price of a trip, they do not currently account for unexpected changes to the estimated time of a trip, such as wait time or heavy traffic…”
RSDU therefore conclude that Uber’s recent changes are designed to (further) mislead drivers under the false “independent contractor ” pretense while cutting their rightful fare pay. Not only Uber drivers have no control on most aspects of “their business”, drivers can no longer tell how much they are going to be paid for a job and must take Uber’s (often incorrect) total on its face value, let alone expected to be liable for all applicable taxes, while unsure how much the passenger really paid for the trip.
Similar cases in the USA reveal Uber was often caught red handed, charging passengers more than what they report to driver “partners”. We are yet to see evidence of that occurring in Australia but encourage drivers who have proof to contact us and submit the evidence.
RSDU has launched an online Uber gross fare calculator to help drivers calculate the real gross fare for a trip according to the trip meter. Visit our website and feel free to use the calculator and compare your Uber stated gross fare to your actual trip meter.
Uber’s cynical exploitation of drivers is not new. They’ve been known to do the same all around the world, adopting a business model that rely on exploiting workers, misleading and underpaying them. The question anyone must ask themselves is what our Government is going to do about that? Especially the Government bodies like the FWC or ACCC, bodies supposedly responsible to ensure such mass scale exploitation of workers is not allowed in this country.
The RSDU will continue to submit information to FWO in hope of a faster turnaround to this obviously burning issue. We have been advised the investigation into Uber is ongoing and we encourage all drivers involved and affected by upfront pricing to do the same, forward the information to your inspector(s) and seek answers.
As always, we’ve been working close with the media which prompted an ABC investigation into the matter. Drivers wishing to take part in this special investigation are welcome to contact the ABC directly via the contact details listed over the RSDU forums. Click this link if you wish to take part in this ongoing investigation.
The RSDU is currently in communication with a number of law firms looking into the possibility of launching a class action.
Update26 July 2018, Thank you to all the drivers taking part in the special ABC investigation, (instigated by the RSDU) into Uber “upfront pricing” and UberPool. You can read the full ABC article by clicking this link.
Update 28 July 2018, RSDU announcing No Uber, Drivers Log-OFF strike! Monday 6/8/2018 – 7am to 9:30am. Click here for more info.
MyLocation by RSDU.
We are happy to announce the release of yet another RSDU app, designed to make the stress of looking for a street name or house number in a dark street a little easier.
MyLocation-by-RSDU is designed to help drivers quickly pinpoint thier location while clearly displaying the street names and house numbers around them. The app makes it very easy to share your location with your contacts, via text or other messaging applications installed on your smartphone. MyLocation-by-RSDU is capable of displaying your current Latitude and Longitude coordinates as well as offer an auto application shutdown to conserve battery power.
MyLocation-by-RSDU cost $1.99 to download. Proceed from the sales of this app support RSDU’s driver’s advocacy activities. If you like our work and wish to support our activities then please proceed and download this useful app now. Designed by a driver for drivers, we have no doubt you’ll quickly find yourself using this tool almost daily to verify passengers pick up address.
Stay tuned for more exciting app development work to be published soon, apps designed to make your working day less stressful and more productive.
Please drive safe at all times.
Max – Ride Share Drivers United
Let passengers know about other RideShare operators
Drivers, it’s in your best interest to let your passengers know about ALL the major ride share operators currently operating in your city. We’ve started creating special leaflets drivers can print and hand out to their passengers, listing all the major operators in a given city. Do not hesitate letting us know if you would like us to add other operators to your city (please include special promotional offer they may currently offer to passengers).
City List:
- Melbourne – [Click to print leaflet]
- Sydney – [coming soon]
- Perth – [coming soon]
- Brisbane – [coming soon]
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