Uber backed a Nevada ballot question that would limit how much Nevada attorneys can charge in civil cases. Attorneys said that these limits would prevent them from taking on risky cases such as claims by victims of sexual assault against Uber and its drivers.
Self-driving car ran a red light, but Uber falsely said an employee was driving
During the period in which Uber operated self-driving cars in California without a permit, a bystander observed an Uber vehicle run a red light without stopping. Uber initially claimed the incident was human error. But the self-driving car was in fact driving itself, according to two Uber employees and based on Uber documents viewed by the New York Times.
Uber employee feared rape, and manager offered company health care, not help
Mike Isaac’s Super Pumped (p. 240) describes an experience of a female employee in Malaysia who noticed men following her from work, leading her to fear she would be raped. She texted multiple people seeking help, including her manager, the local Uber general manager. Rather than rush to the scene or call the police, the manager texted: “Don’t worry, Uber has great health care. We will pay for your medical bills.”
Levandowski’s colleagues touted “safety third”
Mike Isaac’s Super Pumped (p. 226) reports that colleagues of Anthony Levandowski made stickers touting “Safety Third” — indicating that safety was not a top priority for self-driving truck company Otto or its founder.
Brazilian thieves and taxi cartels anonymously attacked, robbed, and even murdered drivers
Mike Isaac’s Super Pumped (p. 216) reports that in Brazil, Uber had a particularly light sign-up process: No identify documents, no credit card (since cash was more widely used), and just an email address or phone number. Thieves and taxi cartels could therefore sign up for Uber anonymously — then steal or burn cars, attack or rob drivers, and sometimes commit murder. Among the victims was Luis Filho, who was stabbed to death as passengers stole his vehicle.
Mexican taxi operators beat, robbed, and even murdered Uber drivers
Mike Isaac’s Super Pumped (p. 215) reports that taxi drivers in Mexico were frustrated at having spent spent thousands of dollars on licenses, permits, training classes, and other regulatory requirements — only for Uber to take their business. As cabbies grew more desperate, they beat and robbed Uber drivers — and killed one Uber driver in Guadalajara.
Detailed taxonomy of sexual misconduct and assault
Mike Isaac’s Super Pumped (p. 207) that complaints about sexual misconduct and assault (typically though not exclusively between drivers and passengers) were so common that Uber created a twenty-one category classification system for these problems.
“Safe Rides Fee” did nothing for safety
Mike Isaac’s Super Pumped (p. 172) reports that in 2014, Uber added a “Safe Rides Fee” — but used that revenue for general purposes, with no specific investment in safety. He quotes a former employee: “We boosted our margins saying our rides were safer. It was obscene.”
Levandowski hired a lobbyist for autonomous vehicles without safety drivers
Then working at Google, Anthony Levandowski hired a lobbyist in Nevada to advocate for a law that allowed autonomous vehicles to operate without backup/safety drivers. Google didn’t know about this, and this was contrary to Google’s careful approach.
Source: Mike Isaac’s Super Pumped (p. 143)
Victims of sexual assault, rape, harassment, and gender-motivated violence criticized Uber’s arbitration clause
Fourteen victims of sexual assault, rape, harassment, and gender-motivated violence criticized Uber’s arbitration clause, which prevented them from bringing lawsuits about the harm they suffered. Their letter to Uber’s Board of Directors asked that Uber remove (or agree not to enforce) its arbitration clause as to these complaints. They noted a California case in which Uber aggressively sought to force one of their complaints into confidential arbitration. They also noted pending legislation in the United States Congress and New York State Senate that would disallow companies from requiring victims of sexual harassment or assault to proceed in arbitration.
News coverage from The Mercury News and Recode.