Skip to main content

The context you need, when you need it

When news breaks, you need to understand what actually matters — and what to do about it. At Vox, our mission to help you make sense of the world has never been more vital. But we can’t do it on our own.

We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. Will you support our work and become a Vox Member today?

Join now

Uber shortchanged New York drivers by an average of $900. It will cost them millions.

Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit - Day 1
Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit - Day 1
Uber CEO Travis Kalanick
Photo by Mike Windle/Getty Images for Vanity Fair

Uber admitted on Tuesday that it has shortchanged drivers in New York by an average of about $900 per driver. The calculation error could wind up costing Uber more than $45 million in payments to drivers in the New York area.

“We made a mistake and we are committed to making it right by paying every driver every penny they are owed, plus interest, as quickly as possible,” Rachel Holt, regional general manager of Uber in the US and Canada, told the Wall Street Journal. “We are working hard to regain driver trust, and that means being transparent, sticking to our word, and making the Uber experience better from end to end.”

It’s the latest embarrassing admission for a company that has long had a testy relationship with its drivers. The company admitted to a similar mistake in the Philadelphia area. Back in January, Uber agreed to pay $20 million to settle claims that it had exaggerated how much people could earn as Uber drivers.

Then in February, Uber CEO Travis Kalanick was caught on tape lecturing an Uber driver who complained that fare cuts were harming his ability to earn a living.

Simmering driver dissatisfaction is a big problem for a company that needs hundreds of thousands of drivers to provide service in dozens of cities. With so many mistakes, it’s going to be hard for Uber to rebuild driver trust.

See More:

More in Technology

Podcasts
Are humanoid robots all hype?Are humanoid robots all hype?
Podcast
Podcasts

AI is making them better — but they’re not going to be doing your chores anytime soon.

By Avishay Artsy and Sean Rameswaram
Future Perfect
The old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemicThe old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemic
Future Perfect

Glycol vapors, explained.

By Shayna Korol
Future Perfect
Elon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wantsElon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wants
Future Perfect

It’s not about who wins. It’s about the dirty laundry you air along the way.

By Sara Herschander
Life
Why banning kids from AI isn’t the answerWhy banning kids from AI isn’t the answer
Life

What kids really need in the age of artificial intelligence.

By Anna North
Culture
Anthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque messAnthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque mess
Culture

“Your AI monster ate all our work. Now you’re trying to pay us off with this piece of garbage that doesn’t work.”

By Constance Grady
Future Perfect
Some deaf children are hearing again because of a new gene therapySome deaf children are hearing again because of a new gene therapy
Future Perfect

A medical field that almost died is quietly fixing one disease at a time.

By Bryan Walsh