Review: Uber

I’ve had my qualms about Uber for a while now. It’s Silicon Valley’s ‘slick’, ‘disruptive’ new way of rolling back centuries in terms of labour rights. But without ever taking one, my views were more academic than personal.

Last night this changed. A friend of mine hailed an Uber and I hitched a ride with her. The polite driver offered us water and candy. When we mentioned we were sitting on something that seemed like a trunk shelf or floorboard, the driver apologised profusely, nervously joking that we’d probably rate him with zero stars on Uber’s app, in a scene that was eerily reminiscent of Black Mirror’s dystopian “Nosedive” episode.

To see this overworked, poorly paid man constantly asking for pardon while anxiously trying to get higher ratings was a depressing sight, but understandable given the system he’s in. The sad thing is, many people would have considered this horror show ‘great customer service’.