A former Uber driver says he’s considering his legal options after a scuffle at an Uber training event.
David Singh claims he was at the May induction when he asked an Uber trainer to read aloud the contract that new drivers must sign to work for the company.
The 52-year-old said a scuffle erupted after he refused to leave the Skyways Hotel in Airport West. Mr Singh claims he was headbutted and spat on.
“He [the trainer] was frothing at the mouth. Just the look, it was a look of ‘I want to kill you’.”
This man, believed to be an Uber trainer, is shown yelling expletives at 52-year-old former driver David Singh
Vision of the incident was posted on the Facebook page of the Victorian Taxi and Hire Car Families (VTHCF) — a group set up to combat the Napthine government’s reforms of the industry.
Mr Singh is a member of the group and says he quit as an Uber Black driver just weeks before he attended the event.
Uber Black is a legal transport service that employs accredited drivers. But low-cost sister service UberX has attracted criticism because anyone can sign up to become a driver as long as they hold a full licence, meaning drivers and their cars could be unregistered.
Mr Singh says he left Uber because he was unhappy with the way information is conveyed to both drivers and customers.
He says he attended the training event to expose the company’s tactics to new drivers who, he claims, are mostly from a non-English speaking background.
Mr Singh estimates around 70 people watched on as the scuffle broke out
According to Mr Singh, the driver contract — only available for workers to read via their smartphone app — states the “passenger and the driver hold Uber non-liable to any claims to any injuries” including physical assaults, sexual assaults and road accidents.
“Reading 13 pages on a small phone is pretty hard to do. You couldn’t download it or send an email to yourself.”
Mr Singh says he has made a statement to police.
City Journal has spoken to another member of the VTHCF group who did not wish to be identified but who said she also fears for her safety after speaking out about Uber.
Uber did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication.
