Campaigners say Uber and other ride-hailing apps should be forced to publish data on driver workloads so regulators can tackle exploitation and cut carbon emissions.
An analysis by lobby group Worker Info Exchange suggests that drivers for Uber and its smaller rivals may have lost more than £1.2bn in wages and costs last year because of the way they are compensated.
Your report He argues that ride-hailing apps (and food delivery services like Deliveroo) may operate “a business model that relies on an oversupply of vehicles to serve an always-on, on-demand market and the exploitation of workers often trapped in debt and in-work poverty.”
In 54 cities in the United States and Canada, including New York and Chicago, Uber produces anonymized data on distances and travel times, either voluntarily or through regulation.
Using this information, as well as carbon emissions data published by Uber itself and the experiences of UK drivers, Worker Info Exchange claims that almost 40% of the miles drivers drive are covered before picking up a passenger. However, Uber responded that it would be wrong to suggest that drivers are not paid for almost 40% of the miles they drive, as many make money on other ride-hailing apps when not doing Uber rides.
Following a UK Supreme Court ruling in 2021, Uber is now legally required to pay drivers from the moment they log into the app, so some of these “dead miles” are now compensated.
But even adjusting for these factors, the Worker Info Exchange suggests that across the sector, drivers would have earned an extra £1.29bn in 2023 if they had been paid £15 an hour for time spent driving unpaid or waiting and had been compensated for expenses such as petrol. It said a lack of monitoring of drivers’ mileage also meant some were driving to exhaustion.
The report says similar problems are likely to be found with food delivery apps and calls for them to also publish trip data.
“Informal food delivery and ride-hailing workers and their communities are at the cusp of the many problems our cities are struggling to address. Issues such as precarious employment, low wages, traffic hazards, urban congestion, poor air quality and the effects of climate change are part of the daily work experience,” the report states.
New York has taken steps to bolster taxi driver wages and tackle congestion, including limiting the number of authorized vehicles (although this limit has recently been relaxed for electric vehicles).
According to analysis by Worker Info Exchange, Uber’s UK-wide carbon emissions this year “were on track to exceed Transport for London’s emissions from all of its transport operations, including bus, rail and tube”.
With Uber’s London licence up for renewal this month, the campaign group is calling on TfL to demand greater transparency as a condition of allowing Uber to continue operating in the capital and to use data to monitor the sector.
It was estimated that the number of private hire vehicles authorised by TfL would fill every lane of the M4 from London to Bristol.
TfL said: “We are unable to comment on the details of any licensing issues relating to a live application being considered.”
In response, an Uber spokesperson said: “More drivers and couriers than ever before are choosing to earn money on Uber, and we know the vast majority are happy with their experience. All drivers in the UK receive employment rights such as a pension and paid holidays, and average earnings are over £30 per hour. Drivers want the option to work for multiple apps, meaning that when they’re not making trips for Uber, they’re regularly earning money on other apps.” They added that Uber complies with all regulations and legal requirements in all markets in which it operates.
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The Observer recently reported on delivery drivers working for food apps such as Deliveroo and Uber Eats living in a “caravan shanty town” on the outskirts of Bristol.
Asked about providing more data on riders’ workloads, a Deliveroo spokesperson said: “Deliveroo is committed to offering the flexible working that drivers value, along with attractive earning opportunities and protections. Driver retention rates are high and the vast majority of drivers tell us they are happy working with us.
“We ensure that all couriers earn at least £12 per hour whilst making a delivery. This is audited annually to ensure compliance with this policy.”
A series of court cases have ruled that Deliveroo workers are self-employed, while Uber drivers are considered “workers” for legal purposes.
The Labour government has promised to consult on scrapping the “worker” designation and returning to a simpler system where staff are either self-employed or employees, with all the rights that entails. Deputy First Minister Angela Rayner has promised to crack down on what she has called “bogus self-employment”.
Trade unions and activists are watching for signs that this and other promises could be watered down as the labour courts move forward.
Worker Info Exchange was founded by James Farrar, the co-lead plaintiff in Uber’s Supreme Court case. It aims to give independent workers more control over the data held about them and the decisions made as a result.
