While no one really believes that Uber is protecting drivers from “racist tipping practices,” the company’s true motives are somewhat curious. Going back to a 2014 Vanity Fair profile on founder Travis Kalanick, Uber co-founder Garrett Camp explained that, “After entering credit-card information on the app, anyone could summon a car with the press of a button. G.P.S. took care of the location, and the cost was automatically charged to the customer’s account, with tipping already figured in.”

Until the class-action lawsuits, and Uber’s Medium post from April 28, this was the common belief — that the tip was already included in the price of the ride. Having their bluff called in court, Uber changed their tune. But why? Could it be that by extending their commission to the “tip” portion of the price, Uber would be in clear violation of federal labor law? Perhaps. True or not, however, why continue with further obfuscation?

It would appear that Ms. Smiley has hit the nail on the head; that Uber is more interested in “protecting cheapskates” through a “seamless [read tipless] transaction,” than concerned about the well-being of their drivers. In a symbiotic business model such as Uber’s, where the passenger cannot exist in the absence of the driver, Uber’s refusal to include a tipping option appears to be a thinly veiled and shortsighted strategy; one that is more demonstrative of classism, than of ridding the world of racial bias.