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Comment by nknealk | Hacker News Reader

So I think the biggest question here is whether, as an employee, Uber/Lyft can set hours for a driver. Some specific implications:

* Will we see employees (drivers) get a say in their shifts? An employee can be asked to work a 3AM - 9AM shift for example.

* Can not arriving to shifts on time be grounds for dismissal?

* Can refusing a shift be grounds for dismissal?

* Can incurring unapproved overtime be grounds for dismissal?

* If a driver is incurring overtime, is that reflected in the pricing that consumers pay?

* Can Uber/Lyft systemically set employee hours to like 29 per week to avoid FTE status?

* Will multihoming (ie working for multiple "gig" apps) be grounds for dismissal as a conflict of interest?

I see a lot of ways Uber/Lyft could retain significant power over drivers.

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> Will we see employees (drivers) get a say in their shifts? An employee can be asked to work a 3AM - 9AM shift for example. > > Can not arriving to shifts on time be grounds for dismissal? > > Can refusing a shift be grounds for dismissal?

If Uber requires someone to work a "Shift", then they have to pay them for that shift regardless of miles driven. Uber doesn't want that. I don't believe the state is requiring Uber to pay hourly and Uber almost certainly doesn't want to pay people hourly either so none of this is relevant.

> Can Uber/Lyft systemically set employee hours to like 29 per week to avoid FTE status?

This is what most low-wage jobs do so why wouldn't they?

> Will multihoming (ie working for multiple "gig" apps) be grounds for dismissal as a conflict of interest?

Maybe. But since a big chunk of the appeal of working for Uber is flexible hours that work around the hours of other jobs or responsibilities, why would they?

If Uber prevents drivers from doing other gig-jobs, they will have a hard time finding drivers.

> I don't believe the state is requiring Uber to pay hourly and Uber almost certainly doesn't want to pay people hourly either so none of this is relevant.

Pay may be calculated based on metrics other than time, but must be at least the minimum wage, which is based on time at work. For employees, if you want to pay on trips/widgets/sales/whatever, you have to also track hours. So, yes, the state is requiring Uber to pay hourly.

Uber may allow flexibility of when you're on the clock, though they won't have to, but you can bet they'll require a certain amount of productivity.

In a lot of ways this gives them more power over drivers than they had before.

>Will we see employees (drivers) get a say in their shifts?

How different is it compared to now? I want to drive now but there are no customers.

> Can not arriving to shifts on time be grounds for dismissal?

> Can refusing a shift be grounds for dismissal?

Surely they're free to set lax conditions for employees?

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