Uber's "180 Days of Change" campaign, which is designed to improve the Uber driver experience, is getting a positive response for both the media and drivers.
That Uber drivers have earned over $50 million in the 50 days since they added tipping has certainly been well received.
So have their most recent announcements, which are an array of driver app updates that give drivers more control over their schedules.
Key quote from USA Today's Uber Adds Another Driver Perk; Pre-set Destinations:
For example, drivers now can choose six daily destinations, up from two, that they would like their rides to get them near. Also, those destinations can be pre-set with their preferred arrival times. The Uber app then aims to funnel rides to drivers based on those preferences. Drivers also will get an alert if an incoming ride will take more than 45 minutes.
The reason these changes are viewed positively is that Uber realizes flexibility is one of the most important reason most Uber drivers drive for Uber. Again from the USA Today article:
"What we've heard over and over from drivers is that what they value most is flexibility," says Aaron Schildkrout, Uber's head of driver experience.
As part of their campaign, Uber and a group of university professor collaborated on an academic study on the value of flexibility to Uber drivers.
It's a wonky paper that most won't want to bother reading. But the key findings are summarized in article Quantifying the Value of Flexibility for Uber Driver-Partners.
The an quicker summary is most Uber drivers drive part-time and they highly value the flexibility provided by partnering with Uber.
The study chart below shows a scatter chart of number of hours per week Uber drivers drive. The purpose of the chart is to show the elasticity of labor for Uber drivers.
But is also nicely illustrates that most Uber drivers drive less than 15 hours per week for Uber.
Regular readers will not be surprised by these findings.
Our work has consistently shown that most people who work for on-demand marketplaces like Uber, Lfyt, Task Rabbit, etc., do so because they offer highly flexible, low friction part-time work.
We've also consistently found a large percentage of those working in the on-demand/gig economy do so to supplement their income.
This academic study is yet another set of findings finding this.