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UPDATE: Uber South Africa responds to protest action by driver-partners

PARKVIEW – Uber and Taxify driver-partners are still dissatisfied with their monthly income and embarked on a strike today, 3 July.

July 3, 2018
Koketso Ratsatsi 3 minutes read
Photo: Koketso Ratsatsi

Update, 3 July, 4.30pm

Uber South Africa has released a statement following the protest action at the Uber offices in Kramerville, Sandton.

Samantha Allenberg, spokesperson for Uber South Africa said they were aware of a small group of driver-partners who planned to go offline. “We respect driver-partners as valuable partners with a voice and a choice and we want driver-partners to feel they can talk to us about anything at any time,” she said.

“We constantly monitor fares and examine consumer price sensitivities to ensure fares are correctly priced so that riders continue to take trips and drivers have access to more fare paying passengers. If fares were to increase, then riders may take fewer trips which will ultimately lead to lower earnings.”

She said drivers have a number of channels available to engage with Uber including during daily office hours, 24/7 support and regular partner roundtables.

Allenberg provided some background to their engagement with Uber driver-partners: 

  • We’re committed to supporting the men and women who drive with Uber across South Africa which is why since the start of the year, we have invited more than 3 500 driver-partners across the country to sit down with us and share their feedback about their Uber experience
  • The purpose of these sessions is to hear firsthand from driver-partners about what is working and what needs improvement (over and above the feedback from our other communication channels)
  • These sessions are one of our most important channels for connecting with partners and we have made a number of changes to features, processes and policies based on their feedback.
  • To ensure that these sessions continue to be mutually beneficial, we recently sent a satisfaction survey out to these more than 3 500 driver-partners to get their feedback on these engagement sessions
  • It is our aim to continue engaging with more drivers across South Africa.

Incentives and guarantees 

  • While we complete a deeper study of driver economics, we launched a temporary winter incentive prior to the recent fuel price increase last month to help reduce the impact of fuel increases. This is designed for driver-partners who do a certain amount of trips and is calculated based on information provided by drivers and fuel efficiency statistics of their vehicles
  • We understand that fuel is one of the biggest weekly expenses for drivers which is why drivers can also access rewards that help them reduce costs and keep more of their earnings. This exclusive programme provides deals such as fuel rebates, cell phone deals, maintenance and health care.

 

According to our sister publication, Sandton Chronicle, the striking drivers made their way to Kramerville and you can watch the videos here:

WATCH: Uber and Taxify strikers make their way to Kramerville

 

Update, 3 July, 10am

 

Update, 3 July, 9.30am

 

 

Update, 3 July, 8.20am

 

Earlier, 3 July, 6.46am

Uber and Taxify driver-partners will embark on another strike on 3 July. The drivers are unhappy with the feedback from the app-based transport services after their first strike on 18 June when they gave Uber and Taxify a grace period of two weeks to respond to their memorandum.

One of the driver-partners told Rosebank Killarney Gazette, “The following protest will be bigger than the last one and we will have more driver-partners coming forward as well because Uber and Taxify are not budging on our demands.”

The drivers had submitted a memorandum of demands at the Uber and Taxify offices, where they promised they would strike again if there was no response after seven days, however, the drivers gave them more time.

Two weeks later they are still dissatisfied with the monthly pay they receive and are also objecting to the lack of consideration for their safety.

Taxify had previously told Rosebank Killarney Gazette that they have upped their prices but the drivers are saying all they have been doing is misleading people by releasing a statement saying the transport charges have increased.

The driver said, “The only increase is 50 cents difference because it was R7 and they want to take it to R7.50 per kilometre, so it does not make much of a difference.”

What is your take on the strike? Share your thoughts with us by emailing koketsor@caxton.co.za 

Related articles:

#UberStrike: Drivers gather at Zoo Lake due to low prices [VIDEO]

Stay safe when using Uber this festive season

At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
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July 3, 2018
Koketso Ratsatsi 3 minutes read

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