App Brings 'Uber Model' to Restaurants, but With Benefits to Workers
Monday, June 27, 2016 | 0
A new app would bring the so-called "Uber staffing" model to the restaurant industry, with one notable exception: It would consider workers employees, granting them benefits such as workers' compensation, the app's founder told Scout Somerville.
"We take care of our employees," said Rahul Sharma, founder of Jobletics, an app that allows short-staffed restaurants and caterers to summon food industry workers to fill shifts.
Unlike ride-hailing apps Uber and Lyft, which are currently being sued for classifying drivers as independent contractors instead of employees, Jobletics is a W-2 employer, Scout Somerville reports.
The startup has a workers' compensation policy with Atlantic Charter Insurance Co. of Boston that runs from Dec. 2, 2015, to Dec. 2, 2016, according to the Massachusetts Department of Labor and Workforce Development's online proof of coverage tool.
Jobletics screens its workers for qualities such as stress management and the ability to work with a team, Sharma told Scout Somerville. So far, the company has accepted only about 8% of its applicants.
So-called "Jobletes" make $15 an hour, while restaurants pay Jobletics $19.99 an hour, Scout Somerville reports.
This model has Jobletics employees pocketing 75% of the overall profit, placing the company below Uber, which has gotten flak for its 80% payment model, Scout Somerville reports.
Restaurants and Jobletics workers can rate each other, as is the case on Lyft and Uber, Scout Somerville reports.
The app set up shop at the co-working space Canopy Somerville in Davis Square earlier this year and launched in the greater Boston area about three months ago, Scout Somerville reported.
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