The taxi drivers are happy that the company’s “mafia practices” have been demonstrated and that all the quarrels are motivated by them
Uber is distancing itself after documents have come to light showing ethically questionable practices, such as exploiting its conflict with taxi drivers to obtain concessions from authorities.
The more than 124,000 documents that make up the “Uber Files” — dated between 2013 and 2017 — leaked by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists indicate that the company, then headed by Travis Kalanick, was committed to lobbying in the highest spheres to court presidents, prime ministers, oligarchs and media moguls to break into major cities around the world in violation of regulations.
Faced with these harsh allegations, the company assures that they are not the same as they conducted an in-depth investigation in 2017 with Kalanick’s departure which resulted in the resignation of several executives and Dara Khosrowshahi was hired as the new CEO. “When we say Uber is a different company today, we mean it in the most literal sense of the word: 90% of current Uber employees came to the company after Dara was founded as CEO,” they explain in a statement. sent statement. by Vice President of Marketing, Jill Hazelbaker.
Likewise, Uber explains that when they were born ten years ago, there were no ridesharing regulations anywhere in the world, and they worked with governments to “modernize or create new laws” that would accommodate this transportation alternative. In our country, the company points out that since they started operations (in 2014 with Uber Pop in Barcelona and later in 2016 with UberX in Madrid), “government regulations have limited our ability to operate in Spain.”
As an example, they cited the decree limiting the number of VTC licenses “against the recommendation of the CNMC” a few weeks before the Supreme Court ruled on the matter.
On the part of the taxi industry, they express their satisfaction because “Uber has been shown to carry out criminal organization and mafia practices”. So powerful was Tito Álvarez, founder of Elite Taxi, one of the organizations the company has faced the most since landing in Barcelona. Álvarez revealed that he was “monitored” by Uber for years, receiving anonymous letters in the mailbox and phone calls in the wee hours of the morning, forcing him to change his address.
“There are families behind the taxi, we have been afraid and that has consequences for the very serious moral damage that is now known,” said lvarez. In addition, they assure that although they have “washed their faces a little bit” since 2017, they are clear that “they continue to do so”.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
