> I find it highly unlikely that a court would find transportation to be outside the scope of Uber's business
TBH considering the language of the bill, it s very plausible to say that driving people around is not "their usual course". The same way that google is not an advertiser, and airbnb is not a hotel chain.
That's like saying Yellow Cab is not a taxi company because the drivers are independent contractors who lease their cars from the company, and it doesn't actually drive anyone around.
Ebay matches sellers (who choose what to sell) with buyers (who choose what to buy).
Uber tells drivers where to go, and when, if the driver agrees to do the work. Uber regulates the kind of cars acceptable, and regulates who does the work. Your Uber driver can't subcontract the drive to another driver.
> Your Uber driver can't subcontract the drive to another driver.
Drivers can absolutely sub-contract. most choose not to in the US but it's the core of how the Uber Black business functions (a limosine company with a number of employee drivers) and is still how it meets demand in developing markets or in developing economies.
Uber doesn't tell drivers where to go or when, drivers are free to go whereever they like (but Uber does provide incentives and information on where demand is)
Uber regulates what cars are acceptable the same way an Ebay seller has to maintain some standards in their store. Similarly Ebay also verifies that you can even be a seller on their platform, just like Uber does with background checks, DMV checks, etc.
To your last point on subcontracting...I'm not even sure thats part of being a contractor or employee so its neither here nor there.
uber has in the past successfully claimed that its customers are its drivers and its users are .. its users. They classify both as clients, and it seems to have worked so far.
> Your Uber driver can't subcontract the drive to another driver.
Even if their ToS does not allow it , it's not the law
TBH considering the language of the bill, it s very plausible to say that driving people around is not "their usual course". The same way that google is not an advertiser, and airbnb is not a hotel chain.