Dozens Of Uber Employees Fired Or Investigated For Harassment. Uber And Lyft Drivers Unaware of Safety Recalls

Ride-sharing companies are in the news again and probably not for the reasons their management executives would prefer. First, TechCrunch reported on Thursday:

"... at a staff meeting in San Francisco, Uber executives revealed to the company’s 12,000 employees that 20 of their colleagues had been fired and that 57 are still being probed over harassment, discrimination and inappropriate behavior, following a string of accusations that Uber had created a toxic workplace and allowed complaints to go unaddressed for years. Those complaints had pushed Uber into crisis mode earlier this year. But the calamity may be just beginning... Uber fired senior executive Eric Alexander after it was leaked to Recode that Alexander had obtained the medical records of an Uber passenger in India who was raped in 2014 by her driver."

"Recode also reported that Alexander had shared the woman’s file with Kalanick and his senior vice president, Emil Michael, and that the three men suspected the woman of working with Uber’s regional competitor in India, Ola, to hamper its chances of success there. Uber eventually settled a lawsuit brought by the woman against the company..."

News broke in March, 2017 about both the Recode article and the Grayball activity at Uber to thwart local government code inspections. In February, a former Uber employee shared a disturbing story with allegations of sexual harassment.

Second, the investigative team at WBZ-TV, the local CBS afiliate in Boston, reported that many Uber and Lyft drivers are unaware of safety recalls affecting their vehicles. This could make rides in these cars unsafe for passengers:

"Using an app from Carfax, we quickly checked the license plates of 167 Uber and Lyft cars picking up passengers at Logan Airport over a two day period. Twenty-seven of those had open safety recalls or about 16%. Recalls are issued when a manufacturer identifies a mechanical problem that needs to be fixed for safety reasons. A recent example is the millions of cars that were recalled when it was determined the airbags made by Takata could release shrapnel when deployed in a crash."

Both ride-sharing companies treat drivers as independent contractors. WBZ-TV reported:

"Uber told the [WBZ-TV investigative] Team that drivers are contractors and not employees of the company. A spokesperson said they provide resources to drivers and encourage them to check for recalls and to perform routine maintenance. Drivers are also reminded quarterly to check with NHTSA for recall information."

According to the president of the Massachusetts Bar Association Jeffrey Catalano, the responsibility to make sure the car is safe for passengers lies mainly with the driver. But because Uber and Lyft both advertise their commitment to safety on their websites, they too could be held responsible."