“Working for Uber is not moving up the ladder of success as the article portrays.”
Yet another liberal arts major. All he sees are Uber drivers making something $40 per hour when they’re driving him to a ‘concert’. What he doesn’t see is the following:
1) The down-time for that driver. I don’t know what that is, but it does always seem that drivers are available...hence not carrying people.
2) The TRASHING of his nice new car. Even with perfect passengers, city driving costs at least 50 cents per mile, when you factor in depreciation, insurance, gas, and maintenance.
3) Uber’s cut, whatever amount that is.
By the time those factors are backed out, the driver is maybe making $10 to $15 per hour. Now he ‘thinks’ he’s making more, because he only sees the gas expense real-time. Maintenance comes in chunks and depreciation only when he sells it. But it is all money out of his pocket.
But having said all that, I still love Uber, nice cars and nice drivers!
From what I’ve read on Uber forums, the newest drivers get the most jobs. An “old” driver can have only been driving for two weeks before his down time is hours at a time, sitting in his car or spending money at a coffee shop waiting for his next assignment. This happened to my husband. Simply wasn’t worth it.
At holidays, they push getting out to drive and that floods the market. Good for passengers, bad for drivers.