Uber has laid off 600 employees amidst the coronavirus pandemic. The company mentioned that the sacked staff would be paid 10 to 12 weeks of salary, besides medical insurance coverage for the next six months and outplacement support. Pradeep Parameswaran, president, Uber India and South Asia, said: “The impact of Covid-19 and the unpredictable nature of the recovery has left Uber India with no choice but to reduce the size of its workforce 600 people across driver and rider support, as well as other functions, are being impacted." “I want to apologise to departing colleagues and extend my heartfelt thanks to them for their contributions to Uber, the riders, and the driver partners we serve in India,” he added."
Uber’s announcement follows a similar cost cutting measures enforced by its local rival Ola, which eliminated 1,400 jobs, or 35% of its workforce last week. As in most other parts of the world, the Covid-19 outbreak has disrupted several industries in India including food delivery, hospitality and travel. Food delivery startups Swiggy and Zomato have together eliminated about 2,600 jobs (with 2,100 at Swiggy alone) as many of their existing customers attempt to avoid exposure to the world. Uber sold its Indian food delivery business to Zomato earlier this year. Travel and hospital firms such as MakeMyTrip and Oyo have also cut several jobs or furloughed thousands of employees in recent months as their revenues drop significantly.