Uber operators ‘thrown to the wolves’
Drivers ‘not allowed to fight back or defend’ themselves
Lindelani Mashau’s family had hope he would pull through despite his horrific burn injuries after his car was set alight in Pretoria last month.
A source close to the family said Mashau died just as he was beginning to show signs of recovery.
The Uber driver was brutally attacked on June 10 in Sunnyside in the escalating violence and intimidation meted out to Uber drivers by cab drivers.
Several Uber drivers who spoke on condition of anonymity have raised serious concerns about security and working conditions.
“The security guards the company claims are there to protect us stand there and do nothing when we are attacked.
“They take forever to arrive on the scene and also act as spies for the company‚” a Johannesburg-based driver said.
He said on Friday a woman driver was attacked at Park Station in the presence of the guards, who just watched.
“The worst part is that we are also not supposed to defend ourselves or fight back or we are deactivated (suspended from the app-driven service).
“The guards are just there to rat us out if we defend ourselves‚” he said.
Another driver‚ a 33-year-old from Limpopo‚ said the guards did nothing when he was assaulted in Pretoria last month.
He said the guards told him they were there to “calm the situation” and not to intervene.
“What’s the point of having security guards that do nothing to protect us?” he asked.
The drivers said Uber was throwing them to the wolves and would not take responsibility for what was happening to them. They say they take huge risks on their lives daily to pay their car instalments and to feed their families.
One driver said last month Uber raised its cut of drivers’ taxi fares from 20% to 25% without notice. The company has since rejected this claim.
“You complain‚ you get deactivated. Drivers are forced to work under these conditions because of fear of being deactivated‚” the driver said.
Zweli Ngwenya‚ spokesman of The Movement‚ formed by drivers concerned with their safety‚ confirmed the issues raised by the drivers.
He said Uber was now challenging a ruling by the Commission for Conciliation‚ Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA)‚ that said seven deactivated drivers were Uber employees.
On the role of the security guards‚ Uber said it had hired additional security: “They are not the authorities or police‚ they have been put in place to monitor and manage the situation as best as possible.
“We need law enforcement and the police minister to get involved and help solve the issue as soon as possible; they are the only ones who can move this forward.”