Cab hailing major Uber India is considering handing over pink slips to nearly 500-700 employees, according to news report published in Entrackr. With ongoing coronavirus pandemic virtually impacting every sector, ride-hailing companies have also witnessed a huge drop in its overall business.
Although Ola and Uber have now been allowed to operate their rides in the green zone, this may not offer much respite to their struggling business. Mainly because the overall volumes of the ride are not expected to rise sharply until the nationwide lockdown is lifted.
Sources claim that Uber India is likely to announce about layoffs once the nationwide lockdown is lifted. The 500-700 employees that are likely to be laid off constitutes roughly 25-30% total workforce in India, according to reports.
Another source, cited by Entrackr, claimed that the company is delaying the announcement because of the government advisory requesting companies not to lay off staff during the ongoing COVID 19 lockdown.
The news of Uber India planning a mass lay off has come at a time when several media reports are claiming that the San Francisco headquartered company may slash 20% of its global workforce in the coming weeks.
Last week, Uber’s CTO and one of the long serving top executives, Thuan Pham, announced that he is stepping down from the organization. Pham’s departure has already stoked the rumors of upcoming mass layoffs.
While Uber’s balance sheet was already under severe stress, the unprecdented coronavirus crisis has further added to its misery. To streamline its balance sheet, the company has started the cost driving measure in a big way. UberEats few days back announced its exit from 7-8 markets.
Uber had already sold its Indian food delivery business to Zomato in an all-stock deal earlier this year.