Aussies are being forced to accept jobs with no clue what they'll be paid

Exclusive: Marcel Black* has seconds to decide if she wants to take a job that could cost her more money than it makes her.

If she doesn't accept the job in time, or at all, she could be penalised.

This is how tens of thousands of Australian Uber drivers work and Black, 52, wants to change it.

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An executive assistant from Sydney, she started driving for Uber on weekends to keep up with the cost of living.

But she was shocked to discover that Uber drivers aren't given crucial information about a ride – like the fare, pickup or drop-off address – until after they accept it.

Uber drivers earn a base fare plus extra cash based on how long and far they drive, minus any service, booking or cancellation fees.

Black couldn't believe that she was expected to accept rides with no indication of what she'd be paid for them.

"Ask any contractor in Australia, an electrician, a plumber, they're not going to accept the job without telling you how much they want to be paid," she told 9news.com.au.

"We just want the same."

All Australian Uber drivers are shown before accepting a ride is:

• the time and distance to the pickup point
• any surge pricing
• the rider's rating
• the type of trip (e.g. UberX, UberXL)

9news understands that Australian drivers can also see the upfront fare and pickup and drop off location for Uber Reserve and Intercity trips.

Drivers with Gold, Platinum, or Diamond status in the Uber Pro rewards program may also be able to access the trip's estimated duration and direction (e.g. north, south).

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Black said drivers must maintain an acceptance rate of 85 per cent and above to continue to access those details.

That makes cancelling a ride for any reason risky.

If a driver's overall cancellation rate gets too high, Black claimed drivers face warnings, lower fares or deactivation.

Uber drivers are also only paid for the ride from the pickup point to the drop-off point, not the distance driven to collect a passenger.

Which means drivers could accept a job kilometres out of their way, not knowing it will only make them a few dollars.

"On Saturday, I did a pickup that was 10 kilometres away and it took 1.6 kilometres to get to the drop off the drop off," Black said.

"So I made an almost 12-kilometre drive for $6 pay ... that's not worth my time."

Not knowing the final destination of a ride before accepting it is also a safety concern for many drivers.

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Black feels unsafe in some locations late at night and wishes she could screen rides to avoid having to drop passengers off in those areas.

"It's definitely a safety question for women drivers," she said.

"I've had rides where I've been thinking, 'oh my god, I'm gonna die because the place is so dark.'"

It's a different story for Australian Uber Eats drivers and millions of Uber drivers overseas.

Black previously drove for Uber Eats and said she was able to see how much she'd make from a delivery, as well as the pickup and drop-off address before accepting a job.

And Uber drivers in the US are given a wealth of information before accepting rides.

Screenshots of the app interface show an estimated fare, distance to the pickup location, its street address, the trip distance, length of time, and address of the drop-off location.

All of which is visible to drivers before accepting a ride.

"The Americans get it, I don't understand why we can't get it," Black said.

"All we want to know is how much the fare will be, and the address where we going."

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She wants to be able to see how much she'll make, as well as the pickup and drop-off locations, prior to accepting a ride on Uber.

But some passengers are opposed to that kind of transparency.

They worry that drivers will disproportionately decline short trips that won't make them much money, or rides that take them out of the way.

Black claimed that Uber agents said similar things when she raised the issue.

"The last communication that I got was from one of the agents saying, I'm paraphrasing me here, 'we're not going to change it, because we find it unfair,'" she said.

"Unfair to whom, I don't know."

An Uber spokesperson told 9news.com.au that the business regularly engages with driver partners to understand how to better support them.

"We'll keep listening and evolving the app to help driver partners make informed decisions and have a more reliable experience on the platform," they said.

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After raising the issue with Uber, Black started a Change.org petition demanding transparency for Australian Uber drivers.

It has already attracted more than 1000 signatures.

"We fully know that Uber is not going to do this on their own, they're not going to change it just because we want them to," she said.

Black said drivers deserve to know where they're going and what they stand to earn before accepting rides.

She also suggested that if Uber doesn't want drivers to cherry-pick rides that pay well, it should increase driver wages.

*Name changed.

Have you got a story? Contact reporter Maddison Leach at mleach@nine.com.au

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