Uber is using the Seattle market to test another new idea.
As a result of its recent $100 million settlement with up to 385,000 drivers who sued Uber over job classification, Uber agreed to create an appeals process for drivers that are terminated from its platform.
In a blog post, Uber CEO Travis Kalanick noted that the company is already testing a pilot version of the appeals process in Seattle, where Uber is also piloting an alternative carpooling service to UberPool called UberHOP.
An Uber spokesperson told GeekWire that the company likes testing new ideas and products in Seattle because of its size and robust driver community. Uber also has a fast-growing engineering center in downtown Seattle that opened in 2015.
As for the appeals process, Uber said it is utilizing a rotating panel of experienced and highly-rated drivers who are selected by an application process. They hear from recently-deactivated drivers who may not agree with why they were kicked off the Uber platform.
Uber said that certain deactivation decisions, like those related to criminal activity, reckless driving, physical altercations, or sexual misconduct, will not be eligible for appeal. But for those that qualify — this decision seems to be up to Uber’s discretion — the rotating panel will make binding decisions, with the details of each vote kept private and without an Uber representative in the room.
Uber plans to use the pilot in Seattle to learn what types of appeals drivers want heard.
As part of the settlement, the appeals process will also be available in California and Massachusetts. If they are successful, Uber said it will look to roll this out across the U.S.
“Our hope is that this kind of peer review process will improve transparency and accountability and give drivers an additional voice,” Kalanick wrote in the blog post.
Along with the creation of an appeals process, Uber said it will also help create and fund “a driver’s association” to help “discuss the issues that matter most to drivers.”
Though Uber has to pay drivers in California and Massachusetts up to $100 million as part of the settlement, it was a big win for the company given that drivers will still remain as independent contractors and not employees, which would require the Uber to provide costly worker protections.
