Uber's Legal Department Faces Losses as Company Cuts Positions, Pivots Focus in Response to COVID-19
"I'm deeply sorry we're facing these unprecedented circumstances that have required us to make some very hard, very tough decisions," Chief Legal Officer Tony West said in an email to his team.
May 21, 2020 at 01:49 PM
4 minute read
As social distancing restrictions and safety concerns brought on by the coronavirus pandemic continue to wreak havoc on the gig economy, many tech companies are being forced to make cuts across the board. The latest of which is Uber Technologies Inc., which earlier this week eliminated thousands of jobs, including more than a dozen positions within the legal department.
Uber employees were notified May 18 that the company had laid off about 3,000 employees globally across numerous departments, including legal, engineering, information technology, finance and others. The announcement comes just weeks after the company cut 3,700 full-time jobs from its customer support and recruiting teams May 6.
In total, this month's layoffs reflect a 25% reduction in the company's global head count.
Following Monday's announcement, Uber launched a Talent Directory on Tuesday to showcase its former employees to future prospective employers. Employees who were affected by the May 6 and May 18 layoffs have been given the chance to opt in to the directory, spokeswoman Lois van der Laan explained in an email.
The Talent Directory on Tuesday listed at least 16 members of the legal department who had been affected by the layoffs. This figure does not include all affected legal employees, however, as not everyone has opted into the system.
Due to various coronavirus-related restrictions and local regulations, van der Laan noted the company had not yet communicated individual impacts of the layoffs to employees in all of the affected countries and was therefore unable to disclose department-specific data.
"I'm deeply sorry we're facing these unprecedented circumstances that have required us to make some very hard, very tough decisions," Chief Legal Officer Tony West said in an email to his team Monday. "Yet those decisions don't diminish the important contributions our former teammates have made to building Uber, and I know the talent, skill, grit and optimism that made them valued members of Team CLO are qualities that will always be in demand—global pandemic or not."
West was not available for further comment prior to publication.
Former legal professionals took to LinkedIn following the announcement to break the news and express gratitude for their supportive team members at Uber.
"Due to COVID-19 related restructuring and layoffs, it was my last day at Uber. It was a thrilling ride, and I was honored to work with such a talented and creative legal team. But by far, the team's most important quality was and remains its thoughtfulness and kindness. So many of you have reached out to offer support to me and others and immediately sprung to action," wrote Linda Yen, a former senior counsel at Uber.
"The people I have worked with and the experiences I have been gifted are priceless," wrote former senior counsel Justin Van Dyke, who went on to thank individual members of Uber's legal team in his post. "You all are the reason why Uber is such a great place to work, and I will miss you all dearly."
At least one lawyer, however, also expressed frustration with the company's handling of the announcement.
"I received a generic email and was only given a quick 15 min <sic> conversation without a chance to ask questions," wrote former product counsel Karen Kopel. "My manager did not reach out to me to say goodbye or thank me. No reasoning was offered. I feel like someone gut punched me."
The company previously garnered backlash following the May 6 layoff announcement, which was reportedly delivered to employees via a three-minute Zoom call.
In a three-page letter to employees, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi noted that the company is shifting its focus away from its Rides platform—currently its main profit generator—to its Eats food delivery platform in response to the pandemic.
Uber's latest cost-cutting measures also follow those of similar tech companies like Lyft Inc., which announced plans to lay off nearly 1,000 employees in late April, and Airbnb Inc., which eliminated 1,900 positions in early May.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllGC Who Helped Fanatics Pull Off Growth Tear Joins Acquisitive Provider of Live Event Logistics
Norfolk Southern Replaces Fired CLO With Fast-Rising Internal Candidate
Norfolk Southern Fires Legal Chief and CEO, Saying They Had Inappropriate Relationship
Trending Stories
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250