the hardline according to tfl
Calm down, dear. Uber is not going to lose its licence to operate in the capital. Sadiq Khan’s acceptance of the company’s open apology, agreement that it could try harder in the future and request that all parties make themselves available for immediate conversations, has all but waived Transport for London’s initial hard-line stance. It’s my understanding that the company will be allowed to operate during the appeal process and it will make a new, and continuous, application thereafter. Phew.
Just for the record, TfL had stated it would not renew Uber’s licence in just a few short days as it was no longer ‘fit & proper’ and that its conduct demonstrated a lack of corporate responsibility, with grave public safety and security implications. This decision was not about the overt sexism of recently ousted CEO, Travis Kalanick, well documented corporate global excess or its immoral stance on driver status and zero-hour contracts, but about the company’s approach to criminal reporting, medical certificate granting and criminal background checks.
However, what surprised me most was the out-of-proportion horrified response of the Uber community to what can only be regarded as mild inconvenience. Whiny self-entitlement is never a good look in any circumstances. Uber is no longer the only taxi-hailing app on the block – Gett, Kabbee and Hailo all now operate in London, along with the majority of traditional minicab companies that have developed similar services. Whilst the taxi industry existed before Uber and will continue to do so post-Uber, there is no denying that its easy to use interface, lower prices and on-line payment mechanisms certainly caught the imagination of the smart-phone generation. But technology-driven progress isn’t necessarily always a good thing and Uber has not been so for many of its drivers and a proportion of its customers.
Corporate companies, disruptive Unicorns included, cannot be allowed to behave how they choose and social responsibility has a major role to play in their operations. TfL has fired a warning shot across the bows of not only Uber but across the gig-economy writ large and all are being told to clean-up their acts and play by the rules. Only time will tell if this leads to better working conditions, adherence to safety guidelines, an increase in corporate responsibility, a competitive level-playing field and who knows, perhaps even the paying of due tax and insurances, but I do applaud Transport for London for doing a Terence Trent D’Arby.
