[mx_03]

Are you really an independent contractor if you cant set your own prices?

To me Uber drivers are neither employees nor independent contractors. Working as much or as little as they want is not enough to be considered independent contractor.

[Aloisius]

Why wouldn't you be?

Sure it's more common that contractors offer pricing, but there are industries where the reverse. For instance, magazines typically have set offered rates they'll pay for articles by freelancers.

[scarface_74]

And this another example of where all laws have unintended consequences. The same law that was California passed to “help” Uber drivers and other gig workers hurt people who really did want to do gig work like write articles for websites.

I think they made some adjustments.

[JumpCrisscross]

> Are you really an independent contractor if you cant set your own prices?

Yes. Most tradespeople have limited control over the rates they can charge. To the extent they can set rates, an Uber driver and accept and decline fares.

[mx_03]

Which tradespeople have the same limitations as uber drivers?

> an Uber driver and accept and decline fares.

That just sucks. Bad system.

[scarface_74]

Why do people think that independent contractors can always set their own rates? If I could just set my own rate I would ask for 1 million dollars an hour.

I could either negotiate the rate and walk away if it isn’t high enough or accept the rate.

Dynamic pricing is suppose to do just that. Uber sets their own rates rate based on demand. Higher prices should encourage more drivers and the market works itself out.

[mx_03]

Yeah you could set your rate at 1m per hour but the market would kick you out.

Let's put an example with carpenters. Lets say I have contracted two different guys and I know how they work. One is cheap but unreliable and the other one is expensive but reliable. As the customer I can decide that the rate of the second one is acceptable and he is being fair with it because I have trust he will show up on time. If he were to charge me 1m per hour I'd no longer consider his rate as fair and no longer hore him for gigs. Also I can also search the unicorn carpenter who is cheap and reliable.

The market decides the rate. You can charge as little as you want but you might be missing money or even be in red numbers. Charge too much and you wont have contracts.

Setting your own rate is not the same as everybody accepting your rate.

> Dynamic pricing is suppose to do just that.

If an Uber driver has a nicer, cleaner car can he charge more? No. Then he cant set up his own rates. No matter how much better he is at the job he will charge the same as everybody else.

That's why Uber drivers are caught in the worst of two worlds. They are not employees but cant decide how much to earn per trip

[scarface_74]

Yes, they can take and UberXL and UberXXL rides as well Black and Black SUV rides.

There is also a rate that Uber charges for more reliable drivers.

Also, I’ve known many that make deals off platform especially for long drives. There was one older driver we got to know when we go back home to ATL that we call specifically.

This is just like developers use platforms at first that pay less and then move off platform.