Flurry of applicants includes familiar names of business and community leadersClackamas County made the 63 names it received for its vacant board seat available for public viewing on Monday morning.
- P Kappertz; One of the greatest challenges that the future ATM system will need to face in the next decades is the integration of new airspace users and the continuous increase in delegating.
- Existing and planned laser ion sources at radioactive ion beam facilities around the world. This is an updated version of the figure prepared by S. Rothe for the Stuttgart 2012 DPG meeting.
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Wednesday, January 20, 2021
By Max Rivlin-Nadler
Photo by ASSOCIATED PRESS
Above: The DoorDash app is shown on a smartphone on Feb. 27, 2020, in New York.
Last month, Vons told dozens of grocery delivery drivers at San Diego supermarkets that the company would be laying them off. The company said it was transitioning to third-party services, meaning those who work in the gig economy through services like DoorDash or Instacart.
In a statement, Vons said the move to third-party delivery companies will help it, “create a more efficient operation.” But a longtime DoorDash driver told KPBS that the move has driven down profits for drivers who use the app.
Aired 1/20/21 on KPBS News
Listen to this story by Max Rivlin-Nadler.
That driver, who asked to remain anonymous because he fears retaliation for speaking out, has been driving full-time for DoorDash in North County for the past two years. He said earns as much as $200 for a full day of work.
As a gig economy driver he’s given options on delivering food for different businesses and has enjoyed the freedom of the job.
“I do like the flexibility, you can go work whenever you want. If you need to take a day off because something comes up, you can do that without worrying. In other jobs, it becomes a big hassle,” the driver said.
Reported by Max Rivlin-Nadler
Around a year ago, as Vons began ramping up its use of the DoorDash service, he noticed that the opportunities being offered by the only grocery chain using the service didn’t really stack up with the other jobs he was being offered.
The driver said that jobs from Vons had him traveling to areas far outside his own service area, for as little as $10.25. That amount is supposed to cover the time spent driving to the destination and the gas costs.
“On top of just the long distances, you also have to consider you go into the grocery store, you have to go get the order from them, sometimes it’s not ready, you’re waiting at the store for 15 to 20 minutes,” he said. “You finally get your car loaded up, take another 5, 10 minutes doing that. Drive, unload the groceries, which can take another 5, 10, 15 minutes.”
If he was sent outside of this service area, he would then have to spend time driving back there to be able to get another job.
The driver said he would reject these offers from Vons, because it didn’t make financial sense to him.
“Now when I see something come up from Vons, I don’t even give it a second look, I just decline it,” he said.
As Vons began preparing to switch to the sole use of third-party delivery drivers last fall, it began to ramp up its use of DoorDash. Because the driver KPBS spoke to was declining those jobs, he saw his acceptance rate plummet in the DoorDash application. That rate impacts what kind of jobs he’s offered. He said this incentivizes some Doordash drivers to take jobs that pay low rates, just so they can keep their acceptance rate up.
“Every month, if your ratings are at a certain percentage, then you get priority in deliveries, it says you get the bigger deliveries,” he said.
In an emailed statement, a DoorDash spokesperson told KPBS that, 'DoorDash is committed to providing the best possible experience for Dashers, and we're eager to hear their feedback on how we can best serve their needs. Nationally, Dashers earn on average over $22 per hour they’re on a job, including tips. Dashers always have the choice to decline orders if they choose, and always see their full pay, which includes 100% of their tips in their accounts after a delivery. We’re actively engaging with community groups across the country on ways to continue supporting workers, including our Dasher community.'
Other companies besides Vons are now outsourcing work to third parties after the passage of Prop 22 in November, which granted legality to gig economy companies like Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash,
The driver doesn’t think the proposition is bad, per se. He’s now guaranteed a minimum wage for hours he’s actively delivering items. He just wishes that companies like Vons were willing to pay higher wages.
Vons would not comment on its agreement with DoorDash regarding rates of pay for drivers.
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Max Rivlin-Nadler
Speak City Heights Reporter
I cover City Heights, a neighborhood at the intersection of immigration, gentrification, and neighborhood-led health care initiatives. I'm interested in how this unique neighborhood deals with economic inequality during an unprecedented global health crisis.
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Stephan Pursell is the only policeman in Birdsville covering an area the size of the UK....
Stephan Pursell is the only policeman in Birdsville covering an area the size of the UK.
The Birdsville hotel is located in Queenslands southwest corner, just 14km from the SA border, and has had a bumper season during what should be the quiet period.Source:News Regional Media
Police in Queensland and South Australia have been issuing warnings over a particular stretch of desert road which desperate travellers are turning into an interstate express way.
The 500km Birdsville Track which bypasses the quarantine restrictions in New South Wales has been hot with an influx of drivers, many of which are unprepared for tough driving conditions and summer heat.
Dubbed the “Covid highway”, the track takes two days to traverse between southwest Queensland and Marree in South Australia. However, it is no motorway.
Once a celebrated tourism route for 4x4 safari enthusiasts and those wanting to see the country’s interior, it’s normally dead quiet at the peak of summer, with the Simpson Desert reaching over 40 degrees Celsius during January.
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The Birdsville Track has become a dangerous road for Aussies navigating border closures.Source:Supplied
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The Birdsville Hotel general manager Ben Fullagar is both bemused and concerned that he’s seeing so much traffic on the “Covid Highway”.
“This is my eighth summer in Birdsville, I don’t recall having a single motel room [booking] for a night between Christmas and New Year,” Mr Fullagar told the ABC.
It has been a saving grace after what Mr Fullagar called a “very average year”, but he was concerned by the state of the two-wheel-drive cars arriving at the SA – QLD border.
“Please, do your research and be prepared,” he said.
The town of less than 150 people has welcomed this unforeseen influx in visits. However, not everyone appears to be aware or prepared for the dangers of a desert circumnavigation of NSW.
Police across the states are worried that casual travellers are taking the route, and have seen a number of motorists try to take on the outback track in sedans and small family cars.
The Birdsville Track, a 500km dirt road which links far southwest QLD to SA, has been renamed the 'COVID highway' due to a number of people using it to circumvent NSW. Picture: InstagramSource:Instagram
A terrible surprise then, when the road runs out leaving just sand for stretches of the 517km route.
Stephan Kappertz Drivers Test
“A lot of people are under the belief that it is a sealed road all the way out from Brisbane down to Adelaide, but far from it,” Constable Stephan Pursell of Birdsville Police told the ABC.
So far, this year there has been a swamped campervan stuck on the road for about a week, and a car rolled over on the southern portion of the road.
Stephan Kappertz Drivers
“People think they can just drive out, refuel and keep driving, but the challenges are certainly there and you can be out there for a couple of days before someone comes past.”
Stephan Kappertz Drivers License
This article originally appeared on the New Zealand Herald and has been republished with permission