October 25, 2017
After months of criticism in the press for dubious employee treatment, sexual harassment allegations, reports of bullying and all the buildup leading to the ousting of former CEO and co-founder Travis Kalanick, Uber is in deep need of an image reform.
As such, Uber launched a six-month campaign earlier this year called 180 Days of Change, designed to improve the experience of Uber drivers. The campaign has thus far included long-trip notifications, Uber POOL upgrades and tipping.
On Tuesday, Uber announced four more changes aimed to improve drivers’ experiences. First, drivers will earn more money if there is a long pickup, tacking on the additional fee to the standard fare.
Additionally, drivers will earn rates per minute of having to wait longer than two minutes when picking up a rider.
Next, Uber is updating its cancellation policy, offering drivers the greater portion of the standard cancellation or standard time and distance rates for travel toward the pickup location.
Lastly, Uber is going to start incorporating toll fees into a user’s fare.
Though some of these changes could mean more charges on the rider, not all the recent updates are catered toward benefiting the drivers. Riders will now escape a cancellation fee if their driver has not made any progress toward their location after accepting the trip.
All these changes will take effect in cities using Uber by December.
