4 ms·

Spot on. Uber and Lyft made legality gambles that paid off (they weren't shut down), and were then able to reap the reward (apps were easy to use). I hope hin

by johnrob 11y ago

Spot on. Uber and Lyft made legality gambles that paid off (they weren't shut down), and were then able to reap the reward (apps were easy to use). I hope hindsight doesn't forget that it was indeed a gamble. Homejoy made a similar bet in the housecleaning industry, but couldn't find a way to pay the illegal workers that make up a good portion of the industry (there were other issues Homejoy mentioned, but this one stood out to me - I could be wrong though).

toomuchtodo 11y ago
> Uber and Lyft made legality gambles that paid off (they weren't shut down) Has the IRS ruled yet on whether Uber and Lyft are going to owe hundreds of millions in back taxes and penalties due to misclassifying drivers as independent contractors? No? Still plenty of time to be shut down.
- eli 11y ago
  Sure, but it's hard to argue they'd be better off acting more like Sidecar.
- pbreit 11y ago
  That'll never happen. For starters, 1099 classification is very defensible. 2nd, if some drivers should be W2s, any type of deal would likely only be in the future. 3rd, in the very, very worse case, there's no way it would be 100s of millions.
  - deleted 11y ago
    [deleted]
  - tzier 11y ago
    1099 classification is not very defensible - see FedEx $228M settlement in just CA. Obama said that he thinks a third class of workers is just a watered down version of W-2 protections. Since we're likely going to see a Democratic president, they're going to be more W-2 friendly than 1099 friendly (though hopefully also technology friendly). Point being...under existing regulations, Uber/Lyft drivers are probably W-2s. But Uber/Lyft are lobbying hard for an alternative, and will probably succeed in changing minds about it faster than the government can move to crack down.
    - pbreit 11y ago
      I don't think FedEx very similar. For example, FedEx employees required to show up for work, wear uniforms, etc. I think "casual" drivers are definitely not W2s. And more serious drivers still probably are not. They have far too much lee-way in what to do including not show up at all.
- prostoalex 11y ago
  Looks like it will be up to the court to decide http://uberlawsuit.com http://uberlawsuit.com I'd imagine in some markets Uber would actually benefit from W-2 workforce - this would allow them to mandate hours and location to avoid the dreaded (by consumers) surge pricing.

by johnrob 11y ago

toomuchtodo 11y ago

> Uber and Lyft made legality gambles that paid off (they weren't shut down) Has the IRS ruled yet on whether Uber and Lyft are going to owe hundreds of millions in back taxes and penalties due to misclassifying drivers as independent contractors? No? Still plenty of time to be shut down.

eli 11y ago
Sure, but it's hard to argue they'd be better off acting more like Sidecar.
pbreit 11y ago
That'll never happen. For starters, 1099 classification is very defensible. 2nd, if some drivers should be W2s, any type of deal would likely only be in the future. 3rd, in the very, very worse case, there's no way it would be 100s of millions.
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]
- tzier 11y ago
  1099 classification is not very defensible - see FedEx $228M settlement in just CA. Obama said that he thinks a third class of workers is just a watered down version of W-2 protections. Since we're likely going to see a Democratic president, they're going to be more W-2 friendly than 1099 friendly (though hopefully also technology friendly). Point being...under existing regulations, Uber/Lyft drivers are probably W-2s. But Uber/Lyft are lobbying hard for an alternative, and will probably succeed in changing minds about it faster than the government can move to crack down.
  - pbreit 11y ago
    I don't think FedEx very similar. For example, FedEx employees required to show up for work, wear uniforms, etc. I think "casual" drivers are definitely not W2s. And more serious drivers still probably are not. They have far too much lee-way in what to do including not show up at all.
prostoalex 11y ago
Looks like it will be up to the court to decide http://uberlawsuit.com http://uberlawsuit.com I'd imagine in some markets Uber would actually benefit from W-2 workforce - this would allow them to mandate hours and location to avoid the dreaded (by consumers) surge pricing.