In American football and baseball, the team that wins the biggest prize gets called 'World Champion', even though the competition only takes place in the United States. A new report by New York based ridehail price aggregator Obi is imbibed with the same spirit, in that although it styles itself as a 'Global Rideshare Report', most of the analysis in the study is about...New York.Nonetheless, the report does contain interesting data that we can expect will be broadly comparable to other major cities, including on driver pay. New York drivers have seen their pay fall by 10.5% on average from February 2019 to February 2024, at a time when petrol and insurance prices have spiked for drivers. During the same time period, drivers have gone from earning 72.6% of the average fare price to just 62.1%, a massive fall in the driver 'take rate'. This has been a pay cut-by-stealth, accomplished under the cloak and daggers of dynamic pricing, which began to be rolled out in 2022.As the graph above shows, whereas the amount of money Lyft takes per trip has stayed relatively consistent over the past five years, Uber has gone from taking nothing on each trip (effectively subsidising fares) to $5.72 per-trip. Uber's earnings per fare in New York has increased 218% in five years! This is as clear evidence as you can find of the transformation in Uber's business model over the past half-decade, from growth-before-profits fuelled by an ample supply of cheap venture capital to 'pathways to profitability', where Uber has to prove investors that it can bring in more than it spends in a financial climate of high interests rates. Obi's report does contain a small amount of London data (although not on pay) which is worth considering. They find that the average fare in London is 71% less than in New York, a difference Obi attributes to increased competitiveness in the ridehail market, with Bolt, FreeNow and Ola (which announced it is leaving the UK market last month) competing with Uber. Four out of five London customers choose the cheapest option when selecting which platform to opt for, so multi-apping and shopping around is apparently the done thing. Average fare prices across all platforms have stayed relatively flat over the past two years in London, with Bolt most often the cheapest option. Another curious development from across the pond has also caught our attention this week. Sergio Avedian, a ridehail driver in Los Angeles and one of the main contributor's to The Rideshare Guy youtube channel, announced on 'X' on Tuesday [18 June] that Uber's latest app update was trying to force him to turn on 'overlay permissions' before the company would let him log-on to the app.Avedian's Android phone informed him that if he agreed to Uber's request for the overlay permissions, it would mean that he "allows an app to show things on top of other apps you're using. This may interfere with your use of other apps." Avedian is a multi-apper (meaning he works in the gig economy for more than one platform, in Avedian's case he says he regularly works for six platforms) so by accepting the overlay permissions, he would essentially be allowing Uber to dominate his phone over competitor apps, for example Lyft's. Of course it's not only about monopolistic behaviour: Uber's demand for overlay permissions is also a major intrusion into drivers' privacy. Avedian could be on a video call with family on WhatsApp and suddenly have an Uber message on his screen, offering him trips. Overlay permissions are an attempt by Uber to to command their drivers' attention at any time the company wishes, even though these workers are - according to Uber - their 'own boss'!"I do not want Uber to control my phone," Avedian tweeted. "I will not drive for Uber until this is fixed, boycott Uber!" On day three of Avedian's boycott, he tweeted that Uber sources had told him he was a guinea pig in "a small pilot", and that Uber's intention is for drivers to receive offers when they are not in the app: which is exactly the problem. "If I'm outside the app, take a hint Uber, maybe I do not want to see crappy offers!", Avedian said.Avedian's boycott of the overlay permissions continues, but he has found a work around he can use to continue to work while avoiding Uber dominating his phone. But one can expect that the majority of drivers do not have the campaigning zeal of Avedian, and have reluctantly accepted the overlay permissions so that they can access their day job.This case highlights the need for the apps of digital labour platforms to be tightly regulated to prevent these sort of abuses of power. If a company demanded to set-up an alarm-system in your home to notify you about jobs in return for being able to access that work, it would rightly be a scandal: why is it any different for intruding on your phone?
Ben Wray, Gig Economy Project co-ordinator
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Gig Economy news round-up |
- DOCUMENTS SHOW UBER PUSHING FOR REGULATION CHANGES IN IRELAND: Uber, the Silicon Valley gig economy giant, has been pressurising the Irish Government to change taxi regulations in the country, documents show. The Irish Independent reports that Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi sought a meeting with former taoiseach (Prime Minister) Leo Varadkar at the World Economic Forum in Davos, and has written to his successor, Simon Harris, since he took up the top job in April. In Khosrowshahi's letter, written under the guise of the lobby group Taxis for Ireland coalition, which Uber is a member, the CEO asks Harris to remove a requirement for all new taxis to be wheelchair accessible and to change the geography-based knowledge in taxi driver tests in order to address "the taxi shortage". The letter, released under FoI, highlights data showing a drop in licenced drivers between 2012 to 2024, but the National Transport Authority (NTA) has denied that there is an "overall shortage" in taxis in Ireland, saying that there "may be an issue around availability at peak times". NTA also said there were "no significant barriers" for drivers to get licences. In the letter, the lobbyists criticise the NTA as being "unhelpful". Uber is only licenced in Ireland to work in large urban areas. Read more here.
- PORTUGUESE COURT FINDS GLOVO RIDERS ARE EMPLOYEES: A court in the Portuguese city of Viseu has found that Glovo food delivery couriers are employees of the company, a ruling which goes against the findings of some other local courts in the southern European country. 'Publico' reports that the court found on 16 June that the app is the work instrument which is fundamental to conducting the work and belongs to Glovo. The court also found that Glovo sets minimum and maximum pay rates, controls and supervises the execution of the work, and checks the quality of the work provided. Glovo said it would appeal the decision. On 1 May 2023, Portugal updated its labour code to establish a legal presumption of employment in the platform economy based on six criteria, with two needed to trigger the presumption. Portugal's labour inspectorate has been pursuing cases of bogus self-employment over Uber Eats and Glovo riders and the first court verdict, on 1 February 2024, found that an Uber Eats courier was an employee. However, in Portuguese labour law each individual case has to be assessed by the court on its own merits and in the case of Spanish food delivery platform Glovo, several courts across Portugal, including in Bragança, Porto and Setúbal, have found that its riders are not employees. Around 800 cases have been brought forward by the labour inspectorate so far and in every case for or against employment status, the losing side appeals the decision. One appeal by the government in Évora has already been heard, with the appeal court finding the Glovo rider is an employee, contrary to the decision of the lower court. Read more here.
- JUST EAT TEAMS UP WITH AMAZON IN GERMANY, AUSTRIA AND SPAIN: Just Eat, Europe's largest food delivery platform, has signed an agreement with tech giant Amazon to offer free deliveries for orders over €15 to Amazon Prime members in Germany, Austria and Spain. The deal has no financial terms between Just Eat and Amazon, and was described by Just Eat as "mutually beneficial" for both parties. Just Eat owns GrubHub in the US, which has had an agreement since May that GrubHub can be ordered directly from the Amazon Prime television platform, but this is the first time Amazon and Just Eat have worked together in Europe. Amazon, which hires many Amazon 'Flex' drivers in Europe on a piece rates basis, is a shareholder in Deliveroo, one of Just Eat's main rivals in the UK and France, but the agreement with Just Eat only extends to countries which Deliveroo does not operate in. Read more here.
- UBER DRIVERS IN BASQUE REGION OF SPAIN ON TWO-WEEK STRIKE: Uber drivers in Bizkaia, a Basque region in the north of Spain, began a two-week strike on Monday [17 January] to demand a pay rise. The drivers, who are members of the Basque ELA union, previously took strike action for three days in April but it did not bring the intermediary firms which employ the drivers, Ares Capital and Moover Car, to the negotiating table, leading to the union calling a second, longer action. The union said that the "majority" of the 90 drivers in the Bizkaia region, for which Bilbao is the capital, supported the first day of action, with Uber's services "severely affected". The striking drivers want an improvement to their salary, which is currently at €950 plus bonuses per month. Other demands include the real working time to be calculated (currently they are only paid when a customer is in the car, plus 30%), transparent pay rolls and more vacation time. ELA said that because of the long hours the drivers work, sometimes 11-12 hours per day, the monthly salary "borders" the minimum wage rate. An agreement previously signed with Ares Capital has expired, while there has never been an agreement with Moover Car. In an interview published on ELA's website, one driver explained how they are managed algorithmically. Read more here.
- UBER LAUNCHES IN LUXEMBOURG: Uber launched a ridehail service in Luxembourg for the first time on Tuesday [18 June]. The Silicon Valley company has entered into a partnership with WebTaxi, a Luxembourg-based taxi platform. Luxembourg's Minister for Mobility, Yuriko Backes, was the first person to taxi an Uber in the country on Tuesday. Drivers will need a professional licence to work for Uber/WebTaxi. Uber confirmed that its 'dynamic pricing' model will be in place, but Laurent Slits, Director at Uber Belgium, said the company did not expect prices for customers to alter significantly from the local taxi market. On the same day as Uber's launch, a local rival called "LetzRide", a joint initiative by three different bus companies in the grand duchy, also announced its launch, promising cheaper prices than Uber. Passengers can book to share trips with others and split the price. Read more here.
Have we missed something important? You can help keep us informed about what's going in the gig economy in Europe by e-mailing GEP@BraveNewEurope.com. |
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Rasmus Emil Hjorth: A gig worker’s view on the ILO conference 2024
Rasmus Emil Hjorth, a food delivery courier in Copenhagen and trade union activist in the Madbudenes Organisation, writes about his experience at the International Labour Organisation (ILO) conference 2024, which finished on Friday [14 June]. Hjorth finds that while platform work was on the agenda, the attempt to find a compromise to suit bosses and workers left him unimpressed.
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Ep 6: Is the gig economy really a "godsend" for women?
In Episode 6, Ben and Marini challenge the idea that the gig economy offers freedom for women from macho office environments and rigid work schedules. They find that the gig economy re-produces many of the same problems for women as standard jobs, and in some cases even reinforces the sexist ‘double-burden’ of waged labour and domestic unpaid labour.
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Ep 7: Is the gig economy good for migrants & ethnic minorities?
In Episode 7, Ben and Marini question the notion that the gig economy is a labour market boon for migrants and ethnic minorities. While the low barriers to entry mean many marginalised workers can access gig work easier than standard jobs, the low pay and precarity of the gig economy keeps these workers on the margins.
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Ep 8: What makes platforms powerful?In Episode 8 of A Rebel's Guide to the Gig Economy, Ben and Marini explain why big digital labour platforms like Uber have been able to accumulate so much power so quickly. They find that technology is only a small part of the answer.
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- Friedrich Ebert Stiftung's Competence Centre on the Future of Work is launching a new study on 'Care Platforms: impacts and challenges from a trade union perspective' at a webinar on 24 June, 1pm CET. Click here for full details and to register.
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The Gig Economy Project is a media network for gig workers and we welcome contributions from workers, writers, academics, activists - anyone who wants to stand up for workers' rights in the gig economy.
If you would like to write for the site, discuss arranging an interview with GEP, or simply have information about developments in the gig economy in Europe you think we should be aware of, get in touch.
Contact project co-ordinator Ben Wray at GEP@BraveNewEurope.com or send a direct message to the Twitter: @project_gig.
And if you like the Gig Economy Project weekly newsletter, why not get your friends and colleagues to subscribe? Here's the link.
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