Uber has announced plans to cut 3,700 full-time staff – about 14% of its workforce – as business plunges following pandemic shutdowns.
Chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi will also waive his base salary – set at $1m (£809,690) in 2019 – through to the year end.
The announcements come a day ahead of the firm’s quarterly results.
Even before the pandemic, Uber was struggling to balance its books, making a loss of $8.5bn in 2019.
Uber said the reductions will come from its customer support and recruiting teams, and would result in $20m in severance pay and other costs.
Executives in March warned the firm had seen demand for its taxi services fall by more than 60% in coronavirus hotspots, though they said ordering via its Uber Eats food delivery service had increased.
“Since we don’t know how long a recovery will take, we are taking steps to bring our costs in line with the size of our business today,” the firm said in a statement on Wednesday.
Uber’s business is heavily reliant on big cities, including some that have been most affected by the pandemic.
Last year, four metro areas in the US, including New York and San Francisco, and London accounted for 23% of the money spent on the platform.
Source: BBC
