Platform businesses are on the rise. Some examples of a platform business are Apple, Amazon, Airbnb, Uber, and Facebook. Platform businesses such as the examples above have a tremendous impact on society as we watch people fall in holes because they are staring at their phones, buy kitchen gadgets delivered to our door the same day, and book a ride that will pick us up within minutes. We all do these things and think we can’t live without these businesses. Platform businesses operate as intermediaries between consumers and service providers — order that kitchen gadget on amazon.com from a third-party seller, or order a ride from Uber or other ridesharing company on a company app on your phone. Because of the way platform businesses work, they are not always in control of the service providers, making them vulnerable to ethical concerns.
Ethical Considerations in Platform Businesses
Because platform businesses work with third party service providers — for example, drivers for rideshare companies — it can often be difficult to regulate the actions of the service providers. Although Uber has strong anti-discrimination, sexual assault, and conduct policies in place, it is impossible for the company to be in the car with the driver. Uber says, “Treat everyone with respect,” “…we don’t tolerate racist or discriminatory conduct or behavior,” and “Sexual assault and sexual misconduct of any kind is prohibited. Sexual assault and misconduct refer to sexual contact or behavior without explicit consent of the other person.” However, sexual assault of passengers is happening every day.
Discrimination and Bias in Service Provision
Service providers who work for platform businesses can be subject to potential sexual discrimination and bias while working for the platform business. These workers usually are face-to-face with customers or passengers who might not want to ride with them because of their race or sexual orientation. Drivers also can turn down a potential job because they don’t want to go to certain neighborhoods.
Incidents of sexual assault while riding in a rideshare are maddening. The following quotes were gleaned from inquiries to A Case for Women: “About 6-7 minutes into the ride we came to a red light and he turned around — grabbed my thigh and tried to go up my dress and then started grabbing my head and pulling me into him.” “He exposed himself as I was getting out of his car and retrieving my grocery bags.” “I fell out backwards into the street; someone at a nearby business called the police.” “All they say is, ‘Oh, sorry that this happened to you, we’ll make sure you never get a ride with him again. And we’ll investigate this.’ But we never know what’s gonna happen because they don’t ever tell us.”
The New York Times reported in an article dated November 18, 2014, by Farhad Manjoo, that there have also been several accusations of Uber drivers sexually assaulting passengers.
Safety Concerns for Customers
Customers who use platform businesses need to rely on two things, among others: trust and safety. A customer trusts that the service they pay for will be trustworthy and safe. Customers should be diligent as some safety concerns they might have are:
- assault (when using a rideshare company or home rentals);
- data breaches (when sharing personal information)
- health risks and unsafe conditions (unsanitary conditions in an Airbnb);
- invasion of privacy (spying on guests with hidden cameras).
Three of the most popular home rental sites are Airbnb, Home2go, and VRBO. When booking a home for a vacation, a work conference, or just a weekend getaway, most people are not worrying about the possibility of sexual assault. However, a young woman was allegedly raped while staying at an Airbnb in New York City. Airbnb paid her $7 million. Per Bloomberg News, an Australian traveler received the payout after an attack. Bloomberg News also reported on August 18, 2021, that a lawsuit was filed against Airbnb alleging sexual assault of a customer by a host. There have also been reports of sexual assault of a host by a customer.
Lack of Accountability and Transparency
Unfortunately, platform businesses sometimes make it difficult for customers to hold them accountable after making complaints or having issues with their service provider. Airbnb says a customer has 72 hours to report any issue to the host or Airbnb and do the following:
- Document your issue and message your host;
- Get help from Airbnb to resolve the issue ;
- If there’s an emergency situation or your safety is threatened;
- If there’s an issue related to home sharing in your community.
However, sometimes the host will not message the customer back, or Airbnb does not resolve the issue in a timely manner, therefore making it impossible for such a platform business to be held accountable.
Exploitation of Service Providers
Potentially, service providers, like Uber drivers, can be exploited by a platform business through, for example, low pay, lack of benefits, and sexual discrimination. Uber was ordered to pay $4.4 million to resolve the U.S. Economic Employment Commission’s (EEOC) sexual discrimination charge that Uber permitted a culture of sexual harassment and retaliation against individuals who complained about such harassment, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
According to a news release of the National Employment Law Project (NELP) dated September 26, 2023, Amazon’s warehouse wages fall short of other warehouse employers, and Amazon workers’ pay does not even come close to average earnings in the counties where they work.
Ongoing Ethical Hurdles
Platform businesses are certainly on the rise and most are extremely successful. But this type of business faces hurdles of an ethical nature, especially when dealing with their service providers. For example, Uber drivers glance at their phone to see where their next job will be. Technically, it is illegal in most states to text while driving, but these drivers put other drivers and pedestrians at risk. Another ethical issue is data breaches. A data breach can be defined as the unlawful and unauthorized acquisition of personal information that compromises the security, confidentiality, or integrity of personal information. According to the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG), all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands have established data breach laws to protect consumers. These laws generally require organizations to notify individuals in the case of a data breach involving certain personal identifying information.
It is important that the platform businesses implement clear policies, provide training to the service providers, and create transparent processes for handling complaints.
Ways to Support Customers
A platform business generally has consumers (customers) and service providers. A consumer on the Uber platform is the rider and the service provider is the driver. A customer on the Airbnb platform is the guest and the service provider is the host. Consumers who have been attacked or who have a complaint should report the incident so that it can be investigated and the driver or host is held accountable,
Tips for customers who have been attacked or who want to file a complaint are as follows:
- Use the in-app emergency button of the rideshare company to call authorities or call 911;
- Document everything;
- File a police report
- Report the incident to the rideshare company or home rental company;
- Demand action;
- Support survivors.