Uber has laid off 3,000 employees and closed 45 offices in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the wake of these layoffs, the tech giant is expected to pay out $145 million in employee severances and another $80 million to shut down their 45 offices. This news comes nearly a month after Uber laid off 3,700 employees In all, the company has laid of a quarter of its workforce during the pandemic.
“I knew that I had to make a hard decision, not because we are a public company, or to protect or stock price, or to please our Board or investors,” Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi stated.
“I had to make this decision because our very future as an essential service for the cities of the world — our being there for millions of people and businesses who rely on us — demands it. We must establish ourselves as a self-sustaining enterprise that no longer relies on new capital or investors to keep growing, expanding, and innovating,” Khosrowshahi added.
Given the lack of recent travel, the company’s cutbacks come as no surprise. Rides are down 80% according to the company. With shelter in place measures still in place, it is unclear how the company will survive the pandemic.
