This Week in Rideshare: Layoffs, Mopeds, and Deliveries.
Uber cuts jobs, Lime adds mopeds, and Uber Eats grabs prescriptions. LegalRideshare breaks it down.
MONDAY 1/25/21
Uber slashed Postmates workforce only three months after the acquisition. Business Insider reported:
Among the 185 people exiting the company are Postmates founder and CEO Bastian Lehmann, as well as most of the other executives, three people familiar with the decision told the Times.
The job cuts at Postmates are in contrast to many other delivery services and fast food restaurants, which have taken on extra workers to meet accelerated demand during the pandemic. On just one day in March, Pizza Hut and Papa John’s announced about 30,000 new roles across the US.
TUESDAY 1/26/21
An Uber driver was assaulted by his passenger for simply asking him to wear his mask. FOX 31 in Denver reported:
Video shows that rider asking McManus if he’s “afraid of the corona,” before telling him he’d put a mask on if they were pulled over by police.
The rider then smacks McManus on his arm while swearing at him repeatedly.
“Next thing I know, he hit me in the shoulder, and I look back and his wife, girlfriend, whatever — she was trying to hold him back,” says McManus. “Last night would have been quite different, I believe, if she hadn’t been in the car.”
WEDNESDAY 1/27/21
First bikes, then scooters and now…mopeds. Lime adds new motorized mobility to its inventory. The Verge explains:
The mopeds are being offered as part of a pilot program to test whether Lime’s customers prefer vehicles that are faster, heavier, and arguably riskier to ride than your average kick scooter.
The mopeds can be rented via Lime’s smartphone app, just like the company’s e-scooters. Lime is still finalizing the price per mile for the mopeds, but it intends for it to be competitive with other shared mobility services.
THURSDAY 1/28/21
On Thursday, Uber announced a new campaign aimed at identifying and preventing human trafficking. WFLA reported:
Uber teamed up with Polaris to develop a video that focuses on educating users about human trafficking. The video discusses how and why trafficking presents itself, the myths and misconceptions of the crime, and how to reach out to the National Human Trafficking Hotline if they need help or see something alarming.
FRIDAY 1/29/21
It looks like Uber is taking on a new delivery: Prescriptions. Progressive Grocer explains:
Powered by technology platform Nimble, Uber Eats can now connect New Yorkers with prescription delivery, enabling them to easily transfer existing prescriptions — or fulfill new ones — from neighborhood pharmacies right from an app.
Customers can manage their medications with the tap of a button, directly from the Uber Eats app, and follow their prescriptions at every step of the journey: from phone to pharmacy to doorstep.
LegalRideshare is the first law firm in the United States to focus exclusively on Uber®, Lyft®, gig workers, delivery and e-scooter accidents and injuries.
