Uber orders sexual harassment probe

THE CHIEF executive of Uber Technologies Inc has ordered an “urgent investigation” into claims of sexual harassment at the ride-hailing service made by a former employee.

Chief executive Travis Kalanick said on Sunday he had instructed his chief human resources officer to investigate the accusations described in a blog post by Susan Fowler, who worked as an engineer at Uber from November 2015 to December 2016.

In a statement, Kalanick called Fowler’s allegations “abhorrent and against everything Uber stands for and believes in.” Fowler wrote on Sunday that she was subjected to sexual advances but, when she reported this to human resources officials and management, they declined to punish the offender because he “was a high performer”.

Fowler said her manager used the company’s chat software to try “to get me to have sex with him”. She took screenshots of the messages and reported him. However, management said “they wouldn’t feel comfortable punishing the man for what was probably just an innocent mistake on his part”.

Fowler’s tale prompted a backlash, including a revival of the #DeleteUber movement, which stemmed from accusations that the San Francisco ride service aimed to profit from a protest last month at New York’s John F Kennedy Airport following President Donald Trump’s executive order banning refugees and immigrants from certain countries.

Fired

“We seek to make Uber a just workplace, and there can be absolutely no place for this kind of behaviour at Uber. Anyone who behaves this way or thinks this is okay will be fired,” Kalanick said.

Arianna Huffington, who joined Uber’s board last year, said she would investigate the allegation with the company’s chief human resources officer. Many women working in Silicon Valley, particularly those in highly technical roles, say they have experienced misogyny and harassment in the male-dominated field.

Fowler said that when she joined Uber, the division she worked in comprised more than 25% women. When she left, only 3% of the 150 or so engineers were women. – Reuters