Uber restrooms cause controversy

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — A photo is causing controversy for Uber: it shows two separate bathrooms at the company’s Providence hub, one for employees and another for drivers. (The company calls them “partners.”)

Erika Betts says she took the photo because it struck her as unfair.

“Divided by partner vs. employee, given the fact that drivers, we make up a significant portion of the company’s success,” Betts said.

And now her tweet is getting national attention.

“I didn’t anticipate the response that I got, after tweeting about that,” she said. “It definitely sparked a discussion.”

Representative Alexandria Ocasio–Cortez of New York responded on Twitter, saying, “Siri, show me what classism looks like.”

“I looked into this,” said Andrew Macdonald, Uber’s head of U.S. rides. “This is not our policy and it’s absolutely unacceptable. The signs are coming down today.”

But Betts is still wondering how the signs got there in the first place.

“The signs were clearly commercially made,” she said. “Somebody ordered them, somebody had them made, and somebody put them up.”

She says this is not the only example of how drivers are vulnerable to mistreatment.

Betts says she’s been deactivated – despite a strong record — because a rider fraudulently reported her, hoping to get a refund.

“It’s important to remember that there are a lot of people who use these gig apps as a significant portion of their income, to support their families,” she said.

Uber tells ABC6 the signs have been taken down and the company is doing a full review.

© WLNE-TV / ABC6 2019