Uber (NYSE:UBER) is about to materialize Friday, the ipo was the most anticipated of the year and certainly the most richly endowed, and this has encouraged its drivers to protest on Wednesday to demand better pay.
In a dozen major us cities, including New York and San Francisco –the city of california, where were born Uber and its main competitor in the United States Lyft– drivers have been called to disconnect from the booking platform and to manifest in front of the premises.
In San Francisco, a protester in front of the world headquarters of Uber was a sign listing what some of the shareholders of Uber could cash out with the ipo (“Initial Public Offering” -IPO – in English) : “Jeff Bezos (owner of Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN), ED) = $ 400 million, and Dara Khosrowshahi (the current boss of Uber, ED) = 10 million, Travis Kalanick (founder and former CEO, ED) = 6 million”, by opposition to the “Drivers = 0 dollar”.
The first listing of Uber to Wall Street should indeed intervene Friday, debut expected feverishly: the company is an industry leader, renowned in many parts of the world, has experienced an exponential growth but … loses colossal sums of money without that profitability is not on the horizon.
Very expected also because its rival Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT), which preceded it in Stock at the end of march, beginnings stock difficult.
This IPO, so it takes like a moment of truth for Uber and Dara Khosrowshahi, named in 2017 to improve the image very degraded by scandals to repeat, in view of the introduction on the stock Exchange.
– Traffic jams –
Echaudé by the disappointment of Lyft, Uber plans to make cautious beginnings in terms of share price and thus market value. According to a source close to the dossier, Uber intends to set its price in the middle of the range announced so far, 44 to 50 dollars, and the group hopes to raise about $ 8 billion of new money during this operation.
Is $ 47 the action, Uber would be worth a little more than $ 80 billion if one takes into account the financial aspects such as stock options.
The company, which loops the traditional tour of the investors used to set the price of the introduction of the title, is expected to announce this award on Thursday evening.
In the documents scholars published recently in the framework of this IPO, Uber advanced a forecast of sales of approximately $ 3 billion in the first quarter of 2019, and a loss of close to $ 1 billion.
Among the many “risks” on current and future financial detailed by Uber on several dozen pages: the competition, the threats, the legal and regulatory… drivers.
To maintain a price of course attractive in order to attract customers and drivers, Uber has in fact multiplied discounts, promotions, bonus etc: this is also one of the causes of the financial hemorrhage that leads the group since its inception.
Uber, which claims 3 million drivers in the world, also said bluntly: “we know always a dissatisfaction (…) from a significant number of drivers. In particular, as we expect to reduce the incentives (financial) to the drivers, we expect a rise in the general level of dissatisfaction” from them.
Another threat: the re-qualification possible by the righteousness of the drivers were employees rather than self-employed workers.
Compensation, status, social protection: many of the requests made Wednesday in the ranks of the protesters.
“It is very difficult to earn a living,” said Kevin Killelea, driver for Uber, the front of the building in new york, which houses the offices of Uber and Lyft.
“They could treat us much better,” he said. “And without us, they might not even go in the Stock market.”
Conductive for the three apps Uber, Lyft, and Via, and the mother of three children, Neomi Oguto says earn up to $ 6,000 some months.
“But between gas, insurance and maintenance costs of my car, my income melt”, she laments.
According to the Economic Policy Institute, the United States drivers Uber earn 9,21 dollars per hour, on average, once removed from the commissions paid to the application, the maintenance costs of the vehicle and their social security spending.
Another bad publicity for the industry: Uber and Lyft have contributed to a significant increase in traffic jams in San Francisco, according to a study published Wednesday.
