Q&A
Safeguards for ensuring a fair deactivation process
3:53:00
·
3 min
Council Member Krishnan questions the neutrality and fairness of Uber's deactivation process, given that Uber is involved in multiple stages of the process.
- Krishnan asks about safeguards to ensure a neutral and fair process
- Gold explains the multiple stages of review, including a panel of third-party drivers
- Uber expresses willingness to work on improving deactivation policies and legislation
- Gold acknowledges room for improvement in warning, notification, and education processes
Shekar Krishnan
3:53:00
And my final question is just given the process the way that it's set up, a driver is deactivated from Uber, but ultimately has to go through an Uber informed process with IDG.
3:53:14
It sounds like from the the questions that majority with Books Power is it as to that the triple a panel that comes later, Uber has the final say on the drivers on that panel.
3:53:23
They can object to them, b to them, or they can be okay with them.
3:53:28
What safeguards does Uber have in place where Uber is essentially acting as the decision maker upfront, the judge, and the jury?
3:53:40
What safeguards does Uber have in such a process to make sure that it's a neutral process as compared to a 3rd party agency, for example.
Josh Gold
3:53:52
Sorry.
3:53:53
The process
Shekar Krishnan
3:53:54
We have The process is is Uber makes the initial decision on the deactivation.
3:53:58
Right?
3:53:58
Yeah.
3:53:58
Then it's an Uber informed process with IDG after the fact to contest that deactivation Yeah.
3:54:04
Including going over to the driver panel to delay panel in the end where Uber also gets to have the final say or has the final say on the drivers that are part of that panel that IDG submits.
3:54:13
It seems a process where, you know, for for simplicity of characterizing it that Uber is the decision maker, upfront, the judge, the jury, throughout the proceeding, So given that setup, what safeguards are in place that what safeguards does Uber put in place to make sure it's a neutral and fair process as compared to having an outside third party run a process like that.
Josh Gold
3:54:36
Yeah.
3:54:36
So first, let me just expand on the process.
3:54:38
The process, there's a deactivation that's human reviewed.
3:54:42
There's a internal deactivation review process that's human reviewed.
3:54:47
Then there is the IDG process and the panel of drivers, the the process is run by triple a, which is a neutral third party.
3:54:56
The panel of drivers makes that final decision.
3:54:59
We don't review the final decision of the panel of 3rd drivers.
Shekar Krishnan
3:55:05
But I guess that whole that whole process, I wonder what's what's the what are the safeguards that Uber puts in place to ensure it's a neutral and fair process.
Josh Gold
3:55:14
We have a panel of 3rd party drivers that are reviewing those those pieces.
3:55:19
But if Look, I think we've worked in other jurisdictions to figure out better deactivation deactivation policies.
3:55:26
And I know we've been in touch with your office, my this hearing was scheduled.
3:55:30
This bill was put on the schedule at the last minute, so my colleague who had talked to your office recently is in Minnesota and dealing with a similar issue.
3:55:38
But we're happy to continue to work on legislation.
3:55:40
We're not opposed to legislation outright.
3:55:42
I think there are some issues we'd like to address.
3:55:44
But I will say that we are the contracting entity with individuals.
3:55:49
And we are making a choice to the same way a taxi medallion owners, renting a taxi medallion to someone, the same way a black car or delivery basis, choosing to work with someone.
3:55:59
We are making a choice to to work with someone, and we sometimes choose not to work with individuals.
3:56:05
We now play into the unemployment insurance fund when that happens, there are no fault of their own unlike taxi medallion owners, unlike Lyft, unlike black car bases, Liberty car bases, that unemployment insurance is available to drivers where they lose work through no fault of their own.
3:56:22
But if there are other steps to take to improve the warning process to improve the notification process, to improve the education process, and then on the back end, improve the process to make sure that the deactivations were reviewed properly against our policies and our community guidelines.
3:56:41
That's something we'd like to work with your office on.