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Broomstick wrote:Miss Hysteria

Control freak is pissed that she can't control you. Lock up her knife arm and elbow her in the face. Y'know, figuratively.

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On-Topic:

YOUR DRIVER: Shit, I think I've got a flat.

DRUNK PASSENGER: What!?

YOUR DRIVER: There may be a flat tire on the vehicle. Give me a second and I'll check. I'll pause the meter so you're not paying for this.

DRUNK PASSENGER: This is really bad customer service!

Raw Shark wrote:Control freak is pissed that she can't control you. Lock up her knife arm and elbow her in the face. Y'know, figuratively.

Oh, you mean mock her, scorn her, and make her look even more stupid and useless than she already is at every conceivable turn? Oh, wait, no, that would be what I've done. As the Ancient Mariner once said, do not do what I have done.

How could it be bad customer service, when you're not charging him for checking out a possible flat?! Unless, in his alcoholic state he mentally mangled the whole pausing the meter so he wouldn't be charged part.

Some days you laugh.

Other days, you give up, and just:

Raw Shark wrote:

Broomstick wrote:Miss Hysteria

Control freak is pissed that she can't control you. Lock up her knife arm and elbow her in the face. Y'know, figuratively.

I'm not so sure it's a control freak issue as much as she's terrified I'm going to make the job she claims is too hard and no one can succeed in look possible or even easy. She's a very negative person, full of doom. Really annoying. She also has nearly no computer skills, which are sort of essential to the job.

So I take it her being backup was not her choice then?

U.P. Cinnabar wrote:How could it be bad customer service, when you're not charging him for checking out a possible flat?! Unless, in his alcoholic state he mentally mangled the whole pausing the meter so he wouldn't be charged part.

Some people, especially when they're drunk, have the idea that I maintain the vehicle myself and am personally responsible for any mechanical failures. The reality is that I rely on the pot-addled halfwits who are ordered to cut corners whenever possible up at the company shop, of course. About a third of the time when I shop the car (which costs me a day or more of work unless they have a replacement), I get it back in the exact same condition that it was in when I shopped it, and my only consolation is that I can go yell at the bosses about it without getting fired. Once in a while they even seem to actively be smartasses or make it worse, like the time that I complained that the credit card machine was being held on by a bungie cord and they gave it back to me dangling by its wires without the bungie cord. And those guys like me. I can only imagine the shit they put everybody else through.

InsaneTD wrote:So I take it her being backup was not her choice then?

Um... yes and no.

Basically, she doesn't want to do it at all - she was back up to the person who was originally the primary person. Instead of making the primary the backup and retiring Miss Hysteria they have the OPP off the job entirely and Miss Hysteria is still back up.

Original Person was have made an excellent back up as she's actually competent, she just didn't want to do the work full time. But that's not my call.

Really, I have some definite reservations about this new position but I figure I should give it at least a month before requesting a transfer.

Raw Shark wrote:

U.P. Cinnabar wrote:How could it be bad customer service, when you're not charging him for checking out a possible flat?! Unless, in his alcoholic state he mentally mangled the whole pausing the meter so he wouldn't be charged part.

Some people, especially when they're drunk, have the idea that I maintain the vehicle myself and am personally responsible for any mechanical failures. The reality is that I rely on the pot-addled halfwits who are ordered to cut corners whenever possible up at the company shop, of course. About a third of the time when I shop the car (which costs me a day or more of work unless they have a replacement), I get it back in the exact same condition that it was in when I shopped it, and my only consolation is that I can go yell at the bosses about it without getting fired. Once in a while they even seem to actively be smartasses or make it worse, like the time that I complained that the credit card machine was being held on by a bungie cord and they gave it back to me dangling by its wires without the bungie cord. And those guys like me. I can only imagine the shit they put everybody else through.

Have you had many Uber/Lyft defectors from your company? From what you've told us about the shop. And management. And dispatch...

Venator wrote: Have you had many Uber/Lyft defectors from your company? From what you've told us about the shop. And management. And dispatch...

Oh, yeah, definitely. I've never seen so many unclaimed vehicles sitting on the lot during baseball season. The company has cheerfully sat on its ass and enjoyed its ability to provide shit service to the drivers for decades, and is just now realizing that there's a problem, and they're blaming us for it in the newsletters. They actually had gall to suggest that we should shower more often and give the passengers bottled water at our own expense a few months ago.

Given how reliant Uber is on cheating its workforce and paying them extremely poor wages, I can't imagine they'd be doing such good business outcompeting the taxi companies if the taxi companies weren't busily grenading themselves in the foot.

Simon_Jester wrote:Given how reliant Uber is on cheating its workforce and paying them extremely poor wages, I can't imagine they'd be doing such good business outcompeting the taxi companies if the taxi companies weren't busily grenading themselves in the foot.

I fully concur. I was actually invited to a war meeting about a year ago where we discussed how my company can remain competitive, with ten or twelve of the other guys who've been there the longest (I was probably the youngest guy in the room), and I threw them suggestions like, "Keep the fleet in proper working order so I don't say-for-example break down on my way to a pick-up or lose my brakes abruptly with a passenger in the back and nearly kill us both (both of which have happened to me)," "Improve the app so it works as easily as theirs," "Fire everybody in Dispatch, replace them with people who give a rat's ass, and pay them more than minimum wage," and last but not least, "Improve the network so we can take credit cards consistently instead of watching it go down more than a three-dollar hooker every weekend." Those things would all involve spending money, however, so even though the junior manager who moderated the meeting dutifully wrote them down, upper management promptly shitcanned them and started blaming the problem on us.

So Uber is taking an already existing shitty business model, making it even worse by cutting out the fleet and passing the "savings" onto their drivers, and the cab companies wonder why they're being beaten at their own game?

DUMB'R THAN TWO BAGS OF SHIT: Is thirteen dollars enough, or would you prefer fifteen?

YOUR DRIVER: It's up to you, but I'll take what I can get.

DUMB'R THAN TWO BAGS OF SHIT: Well, if I give you the two extra dollars, can you promise me it won't go to Puerto Rico or Guam or something?

YOUR DRIVER: I'm not sure what you mean, bud...

DUMB'R THAN TWO BAGS OF SHIT: You know, how those furriners want to muscle in on everything? How do I know my money won't help them become states?

YOUR DRIVER: Huh? Those are fairly powerless territories of this country.

DUMB'R THAN TWO BAGS OF SHIT: Yeah, but they want to muscle in on everything and take our jobs. This country was better when it was thirteen states.

YOUR DRIVER: Know a lot of people from Guam who live on the mainland, do you?

DUMB'R THAN TWO BAGS OF SHIT: Fifty is bad enough; we don't need fifty-two.

YOUR DRIVER: You have an Arkansas accent. You do realize that Arkansas wasn't one of the original thirteen, right?

DUMB'R THAN TWO BAGS OF SHIT: You know what I mean.

YOUR DRIVER: Actually, I don't. What are you even talking about?

DUMB'R THAN TWO BAGS OF SHIT: I'm talking about them island people taking over our country, like that Kenyan Muslim Obama.

YOUR DRIVER: Either Obama is from Kenya, or from an island, such as Hawai'i. You can't have both, because Kenya isn't... y'know what, fuck it. Yes, I solemnly promise that the extra two bucks will go towards putting food on my table, not Puerto Rico or Guam.

DUMB'R THAN TWO BAGS OF SHIT: Okay, here you go.

Had a brief meeting with the new boss yesterday. Actually went pretty well. We went over what I need to improve (and it was actually present in that manner, not as an euphemism for "you fucked up"), I told her that I felt my back up wasn't backing me up at all even though the rest of the team was extremely helpful. Turns out I failed to report to someone I should have, but that's because I didn't know so that shouldn't happen (or not happen) in the future. My Sunday schedule has been changed to give me more time to get the Essential Sunday Task done on time. I do need to move faster and learn more about the department, but she emphasized that that will take some more time and what she really needs to see at this point is steady improvement.

The boss has her quirks, but for the most part she does let you know what she does and doesn't want in a clear manner, and when she corrects you it's done without getting personal and actually focusing on the job. She's a bit moody as a person, but far from the worst I've worked for. She's a bit defensive in talking to her subordinates - based on that, and some of my coworkers, I think she's used to a lot of pushback and people taking things too personally. The only cure for that is my being an adult about being corrected. I've actually thanked her for telling me when I'm doing something wrong, which I think surprised her a bit, but honestly, if you don't tell me what I'm doing wrong I can't fix it. I think she might tend to remember past wrongs a bit too well, but, again, if I can demonstrate a track record of accepting correction and not repeating mistakes I think we'll both get past that.

Basically, new job blues which is adding a bit of stress to my life, but both the boss and my spouse think that this will pass in a month or so and I'll be chugging along just fine after that. I should accept that at face value, but I tend to worry and fret more than I should (hey, I have my quirks, too).

U.P. Cinnabar wrote:So Uber is taking an already existing shitty business model, making it even worse by cutting out the fleet and passing the "savings" onto their drivers, and the cab companies wonder why they're being beaten at their own game?

Not just the fleet, but the entire logistical burden. It might seem like a good deal to have to get private mechanics who actually do their jobs up front, but have fun paying through the nose to replace your own car's transmission in three years, motherfuckers. Also, the more incidents of gross negligence they allow, the less the public will trust them. I talked to three people last night who would rather ride with a regulated company that does background checks, carries professional chauffeur's insurance, inspects the vehicles once a week instead of once and then never again, doesn't wait until you're drunk and then bend you over and rape you on prices, etc.

I've got a friend considering working with Lyft. I'm not sure how exactly to tell her it might not be the awesomest idea.

EDIT: For background detail, she's currently an assistant manager or something like that at a chain pizza place. She's having workplace conflicts and seeking a transfer to another store. The Lyft thing is plan B for her. She already does a lot of delivery, so she's familiar with taking care of wear and tear on her car. She says she likes that she'd be semi-self-employed and able to set her own hours and all that...

Elheru Aran wrote:I've got a friend considering working with Lyft. I'm not sure how exactly to tell her it might not be the awesomest idea.

I think that if you search for posts under my name with the keyword Uber you'll have adequate ammunition. The first real taxi company to adapt will stomp the clown cars into the ground. I just hope it's mine, because switching to another would be a lot of paperwork and a day at City Hall for me.

Elheru Aran wrote:She says she likes that she'd be semi-self-employed and able to set her own hours and all that...

Yeah, that's what I like the most about driving a real cab.

The sad thing is, if Uber weren't doing a bunch of completely unnecessary extra sleazy shit I'd be cheering for them. From Raw Shark's posts it's clear that the current taxi medallion system is an outdated, anti-competitive mess that really needs someone to shake things up with a bit of creative loophole exploitation. And that wouldn't be all that hard: Just set yourself up as a limousine company, employ drivers as independent contractors using their own cars and only do pickups booked in advance. That worked in London in the Sixties, I see no reason it shouldn't work in New York or Chicago or Denver today. Going the extra mile with this nonsense about being a "ride-sharing service" which is something completely new and different and therefore not subject to oppressive legislation like mandatory liability insurance and vehicle roadworthiness inspections is them just being dicks.

Well I did glance over Lyft's website briefly a while ago and it did note that they required insurance coverage, offering their own coverage as well, and vehicle inspections. Something like that. Dunno about Uber. Of course I don't know what enforcement is like... and of course without state or federal regulation, they can do pretty much whatever they want.

Elheru Aran wrote:I've got a friend considering working with Lyft. I'm not sure how exactly to tell her it might not be the awesomest idea.

EDIT: For background detail, she's currently an assistant manager or something like that at a chain pizza place. She's having workplace conflicts and seeking a transfer to another store. The Lyft thing is plan B for her. She already does a lot of delivery, so she's familiar with taking care of wear and tear on her car. She says she likes that she'd be semi-self-employed and able to set her own hours and all that...

Just have her do the math on it, that should dissuade her right quick. Pizza places usually comp you for distance driven on top of an hourly wage and tips. Lyft, I suspect, does not. Just whatever percent of a share. I've seen things indicating that Uber and Lyft tend to result in you being paid under minimum wage once you account for commercial car insurance, gas, oil changes, etc.

Also remind her that cleaning up vomit will become a major part of her job description. And I doubt Lyft will comp her for that in any way. Ask Shark how fun it is to clean up a backseat full of vomit.

Interest point, some of the cabs here I've been in feature little "help yourself" dispensers featuring a roll of cheap little scented plastic diaper baggies. I asked a guy once if people really changed a baby's diaper in his cab, and he said it was for the hurlers, and worth every penny.

Napoleon the Clown wrote:

Elheru Aran wrote:I've got a friend considering working with Lyft. I'm not sure how exactly to tell her it might not be the awesomest idea.

EDIT: For background detail, she's currently an assistant manager or something like that at a chain pizza place. She's having workplace conflicts and seeking a transfer to another store. The Lyft thing is plan B for her. She already does a lot of delivery, so she's familiar with taking care of wear and tear on her car. She says she likes that she'd be semi-self-employed and able to set her own hours and all that...

Just have her do the math on it, that should dissuade her right quick. Pizza places usually comp you for distance driven on top of an hourly wage and tips. Lyft, I suspect, does not. Just whatever percent of a share. I've seen things indicating that Uber and Lyft tend to result in you being paid under minimum wage once you account for commercial car insurance, gas, oil changes, etc.

Also remind her that cleaning up vomit will become a major part of her job description. And I doubt Lyft will comp her for that in any way. Ask Shark how fun it is to clean up a backseat full of vomit.

Do you have to have commercial insurance or can you just use your own car insurance? I wonder.

I suspect that if she did it as a full-time job it'd mainly be a daytime thing. We're both in the Atlanta area so I would expect a lot of to-and-fro involving the airport, office buildings and hotels. Of course, the peak hours are probably evening and nights, to and from bars and restaurants and clubs... so yeah, if she wants to make real money she would pretty much have to work those times, which I expect she's probably used to anyway (pizza and all).

She's not the most... logical person though. Came out against Obamacare because "I don't need health insurance, I always pay up front and I've been lucky so far". Yeah...

It needs to be commercial insurance. Many companies including Mercury will cancel your personal policy if they find you are using it commercially or for work.

Yeah, if they only require regular car insurance, rather than professional chauffeur's insurance, there's a pretty big difference from the perspective of the passenger. Last I heard, it is the former case rather than the latter with ride share companies. Your car just has to be street legal to work for them.

Here in Colorado, the minimum coverage for a regular car is $15,000 in liability covering anybody you ram your vehicle into and doing nothing at all for the people inside your own vehicle, which I paid about $900/year for on my regular car back before the flood ate it last year. The professional insurance that I am required by law to carry on my taxi costs significantly more (to the tune of $8,000/year), but covers the people inside your vehicle (besides the driver) for up to $1,500,000 if anything happens to them, which was probably greatly appreciated by the passenger who got his back broken that time I got t-boned by a drunk driver who ran a red light. I read an article once in which the spokesman for Uber more-or-less said, "If our drivers had to shell out $8,000/year for coverage on their passengers, we wouldn't have any drivers, so we're just not going to do that because we don't wanna." I haven't looked into Lyft, but I doubt their position is any different.

What I saw from the Lyft website (which was admittedly a quick gloss) they allow you to use your own insurance, but they hint heavily that you should carry theirs as well. Of course it's not like that gives them a financial benefit or anything like that...