Thread

Uber arbitration award over Emily Normandin-Parker’s death

159 points · 192 comments · dataflow

calibas · 1790002537 · focus · HN ↗
> Stone rejected Uber's argument that it is "merely a technology company" connecting riders with drivers, finding that Uber provides transportation services to the public through its app, sets prices and controls key aspects of the rider experience.
> The arbitrator also rejected Uber's argument that Proposition 22 -- a California ballot measure approved by voters in 2020 that allows companies to classify app-based drivers as independent contractors instead of employees -- prevented the company from being held liable for Tran's conduct.
The dream of every major tech company, making ridiculous profits while taking zero legal responsibility for what you create...
1. xhkkffbf · 1790004516 · focus · HN ↗
  The bad guy here is the driver. Could Uber have done more? That's what the arbitrators concluded.
  But the reality is that this is a victory for the driverless cars (Waymo, Tesla, etc.). If you want to force Uber to take responsibility for the driver, the simplest thing is to get rid of the driver.
  1. c22 · 1790005870 · focus · HN ↗
    This sounds about right. When Uber's driverless car killed someone they got off pretty easy:
    *"In March 2019, Arizona prosecutors ruled that Uber was not criminally responsible for the crash. The back-up driver of the vehicle was charged with negligent homicide, pled guilty to endangerment, and was sentenced to three years' probation." [0]
    0:<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Elaine_Herzberg" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Elaine_Herzberg
    gruez · 1790008227 · focus · HN ↗
    >When Uber's driverless car killed someone they got off pretty easy:
    The driverless car that very much had a safety driver, which got distracted because she was watching TV shows on her phone?
    chadgpt8 · 1790009146 · focus · HN ↗
    How well would you handle being paid to do nothing without distractions, 8 hours every day?
    gruez · 1790022587 · focus · HN ↗
    Train drivers seem to manage fine just fine. There are even train systems that are largely automated, with the driver largely relegated to being a "safety driver" and monitoring the doors.
    xboxnolifes · 1790027437 · focus · HN ↗
    Trains hit hundreds of people and thousands of vehicles every year, but we made it not their responsibility because you can't stop the train in time. You cannot accurately measure the comparison, since whether or not they were paying attention when they hit someone is both unknown and irrelevant.

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