Uber faces a union-backed protest against its decision to make it compulsory for its London drivers to offer a new minicab sharing service.
GMB, the union for Uber drivers, has written to the company calling on it to reverse a decision not to allow drivers to opt out of the UberPool car-sharing service, which launched in London on Friday. Uber says the new scheme will help cut congestion and bring down the cost of travel for passengers.
Related: UberPool service to allow Londoners to share a taxi with a stranger
James Farrar, the GMB union representative for Uber drivers, claimed that they had expressed safety concerns and had also not been fully informed of how fares and revenue share with the company would work. He said: “Many members have expressed deep concern about the planned introduction of UberPool.
“Members are concerned about safety and the security of themselves and passengers in a situation where multiple parties are in the car at the same time. We believe greater safeguards must be in place for ride sharing especially if passengers are vulnerable.”
Farrar said drivers had raised a range of questions about safety: “For instance what should a driver do in the event of a dispute, if one rider is already clearly vulnerable perhaps due to alcohol, instances of inappropriate behaviour of one party to another or if a ride share party decides to exit with [another] passenger and follow them home?”
An Uber spokesperson said safety for “partners and riders”, or drivers and passengers, was its number one priority, and its security recommendationswould not change for pooled services. He said the experience from other UberPool cities - of which there are 15 worldwide - reported incidents decreased with multiple passengers.
Uber said that while London drivers would all work via the new UberPool app platform, which allows users to request a shared ride, no driver was obliged to pick up multiple passengers. However, the company said that drivers had been sent detailed breakdowns of the fees involved, and they could expect to earn more from pooled trips.
The union, which is battling to gain representation for Uber drivers, has sought a meeting with the firm to discuss their concerns and they are also planning a protest outside the offices of Transport for London, the capital’s public transport body, on 17 December.
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