Tony West, Uber senior vice president, chief legal officer, delivers a keynote address at Bloomberg Law's In-House Forum West. Photo: Jason Doiy/The Recorder

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 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.