Uber is making significant changes to its workforce, cutting nearly a quarter of its recruitment and human resources staff. The announcement came on Wednesday (June 3) from Uber’s headquarters in San Francisco, California. The decision is part of a broader strategy to streamline operations under new president Jill Hazelbaker, who took over recently.
In a memo to employees, Hazelbaker stated that the goal of the layoffs is to create a “more connected, modern, operationally excellent organization.” The cuts represent less than one percent of Uber’s global workforce of 34,000 employees, according to a company spokesperson.
The layoffs come three weeks after Hazelbaker’s promotion to president and chief corporate affairs officer, a role that added Uber’s safety operations and the People and Places organization to her responsibilities. She noted that the organization had become “too complex and fragmented,” with overlapping responsibilities and unclear ownership.
The restructuring is not tied to artificial intelligence investments, as confirmed by Uber’s spokesperson. Instead, the company is focusing on a narrower approach to cost management, maintaining over 800 active job listings, including roles supporting the commercialization of robotaxi services.
This move follows a period of active investment and dealmaking at Uber. The company reported first-quarter gross bookings of $53.7 billion, a 25% increase from the previous year. However, Uber also disclosed plans to slow hiring due to internal AI adoption.
Uber’s stock saw a slight decrease of 0.6% following the news of the layoffs.
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