When Convenience Overtakes Care

If you happen to have a phone, you’ll be aware that Uber has been given its marching orders by Sadiq Khan and TfL. If you have been on Facebook this weekend, or indeed, stepped inside an Uber, you’ll no doubt have noticed everyone and their nan has an opinion on the topic. To credit my good friend Sam Patel, this is a “storm in a tea cup”. What I don’t see is any debate around the central issue to TfL’s announcement, which is that we live in a world where convenience overtakes care. So let’s dive in.

The reason provided by TfL amounts to them determining Uber as not “fit and proper” to be a licensed taxi company in London. For the full, TfL explanation, check out their press release here. At the forefront of the decision is passenger safety. That means you, your girlfriend at 3am after a night out, or your nan on the way to a hospital appointment, etc. So personally, I appreciate that TfL is trying to have our back. Regardless of whether they are misguided, I for one, am grateful.

So let’s look at this safety record. Websites such as ‘rideshare incidents’ exist purely to report on Uber and other such taxi companies. A quick look into the site will show a litany of offences that would terrify you — should you image yourself or a loved on the victim rather than an unknown. If you think it can’t be that bad, let’s pick out a few:

1. Uber Driver Charged With Assault on Pregnant Passenger, College Park, Georgia
2. Wheelchair cyclist left lying in the street after being ‘repeatedly punched by London road rage Uber driver’
3. Florida Uber driver arrested for strong arm robbery
4. Uber Was Warned About Driver’s Violent Past, Before He Raped a Passenger, New Lawsuit Alleges
5. Boston Uber driver worked while awaiting trial for 2 rapes
6. London, England Uber Driver Attacked Police with Sword, Arrested on Suspicion of Terrorism

As someone working in the tech scene, we all imagine how great it would have been to invest in Uber in the early days. But can you imagine being an investor in a company with these kind of incidents?

Let’s not forget that several years ago, Uber instigated an additional fare in order to help prevent customers being sexually assaulted. Such unbelievable disregard for anything other than profit should be sickening. Yet we went along with it anyway.

Furthermore, the direct safety problems TfL highlight in their press release (attitude to reporting, ensuring correct safety measures in place, use of safety measures) all point to a dirty, corrosive corporate culture. Stories of cocaine abuse, workplace groping, stolen technology and investor betrayal abound [Business Insider & anywhere on the internet]. And then there is that video of former CEO and founder Travis Kalanic in an Uber. No wonder he got he sack. But was it to change the culture? Or was it to give the impression of change?

These incidents point to a dirty culture, but let’s call it what is actually is — which is something far more dangerous. Uber considers any regulatory apparatus an ideological enemy. For a direct comparison, let’s not forget that a huge number of us see the 2008 financial crisis as a “failure of government, not free markets” [Forbes]. As our money was lost, and we tumbled into a recession that 99% of us are still feeling, we must not forget the dire failings of government regulation. So let’s be clear that when a government tries to regulate something, perhaps we should not be so quick to jump on the angry, fist shaking, yelling into the wind, bandwagon.

Let’s look at this ideological power in terms of Uber’s actions with a quick tour de force of some of their recent scandals:

1. Then Uber CEO, Travis Kalanick, joined President Trump’s economic advisory board, only to step down as soon as it effected profits. Your opinions on Trump aside (image the situation the same, but Obama as President), his driving forces are clear. Principles, or duty to his country remain absent.
2. When President Trump attempted to enforce his travel ban, a taxi strike began outside J.F.K in support of the rights of immigrants. Uber drivers continued to operate anyway [CNBC], enjoying a good surcharge. #deleteUBER began trending.
3. Most recently Uber is being sued for allegedly stealing trade secrets from Google’s (technically, Alphabet’s) self-driving vehicle arm Waymo. This amounts to a $2.6 headache for the new CEO, according to Vanity Fair.

For those of us believing in a liberal, egalitarian, loving, world, we are given a choice every single day; do we stand up for what we believe in through our actions, or simply condemn those who do not transcribe to our beliefs and complain when things don’t go our way?

Corporate care, or corporate responsibility, is a rising tide, as multinationals such as Unilever stride out ahead, surprising the competition with increased share value while increasing it’s spend on supply chain management, and ensuring their people are treated fairly. It has turned it’s back on ‘aggressive short-termism’ [Guardian] and is reaping the rewards. And it is holding steady against corporate take overs. Even from Mr Warren Buffet’s empire.

Back to tech, Uber’s new CEO, Dara Khosrowshahiis, is new to the point where all the negativity will reflect back on former CEO Travis Kalanick. But how will he react? For now, he’s saying all the right things, focusing on integrity and acknowledging the damage that has been done to the brand at their own hand. However, when it comes to the long term future of Uber, will he choose to hunt profits at the expense of corporate care? Does it really matter if we will always choose convenience?

Let’s look at another parallel. Most of us have lavished praise on companies like Google, Facebook, and Hooli for great products, cool offices, and a relaxed working environment where employees can freely express themselves, all allowing for better profits and a better world. But we all saw the memo at Google regarding extreme gender discrimination. How it was dealt with, that it happened in the first place, and that ultimately, even the most ardent feminists are likely still using Google to plan their next social, demonstrate how little people care, when faced with convenience. Yahoo search, perhaps surprisingly, still works, Bing does the job, and now, perhaps more interestingly, there is Ecosia. Did you know that 80% of their profits from ad revenue goes into planting trees? If you’ve ever debated wether Google search will ever be replaced, the outcome is most often a resounding “no, how could anyone surpass them?”. Suddenly, thanks to a philosophy of corporate care, Ecosia introduce planet before profit. Let me ask you, which one do you think you should use? But will you honestly swap out Google for Ecosia and change your actions? [Please comment below if you do! Or if you have even better alternatives]

Having chewed your ear off about corporate care, let’s draw this to a close by focusing in on London. It is undeniable that one of the conclusions of this action from Sadiq Khan is that he takes very seriously his role as Mayor of one of the world’s most influential cities. Hungary banned Uber, which damaged their growth and brand value, but not a lot of people outside Hungary know this. You can bet anyone using Uber anywhere in the world is discussing London. This kind of discussion puts pressure on brands to change, without it, they remain unchecked.

The most damaging rebuttal against TfL’s actions is the job losses. The Independent reports this to be around 40,000 people, just like you and me, out of work. Damn the Mayor. Wait, or should I be saying don’t shoot the messenger? The person who swings the sword? Is a judge to blame for someone going to prison, or the person who commits the act? It’s up to you to judge whether you think that the Mayor and TfL have acted appropriately, but it is a simple case of ‘tyranny of the majority’. Let’s try a thought experiment. Say Uber retain their licence, 40,000 drivers keep their jobs, and they have just one incident in the coming year. A driver, with a criminal record, who behaves suspiciously in interviews, but passes regardless, then goes on to rape your daughter, or murder your most loved. What would your response be then? If you subscribe to convenience over care, what is your right to complain?

It is simple science that “for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction”. It remains to be seen whether Uber will make the changes required to appeal their ban, and indeed exactly what those changes must be. One wonders if black cabs will take this opportunity to modernise, allowing them to compete with better fares, or perhaps evolve (pivot!) into a premium service worth paying. I for one, am confident that it is a fact that this will precipitate change, for the best, for all Londoners, and every Uber / private hire taxi customer out there. Time will tell.

Currently, the Uber debate is a “storm in a teacup”, and is of very little value until people start discussing the elements that matter; job losses vs. passenger safety; the rapid progress of tech vs. forgotten side effects on society. Ultimately, the biggest question of all is whether convenience and profit matter more than anything else. It’s up to all of us to decide with our actions, not words.

Title photo by Nicolai Berntsen on Unsplash