Uber has laid off 600 employees in India, about 25 per cent of its workforce as the ride-hailing company grapples with a severe economic crisis due to COVID-19 which has brought businesses and the country to a standstill.

The company mentioned that the laid-off staff would be paid 10 to 12 weeks of salary, besides medical insurance coverage for the next six months.

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’.

Uber India said that the layoffs are part of the previously announced global job cuts. US-based Uber Technologies last week announced a 23 per cent cut in its workforce.

Last week, cab aggregator Ola had slashed 1,400 jobs as revenues dropped by 95 per cent in the last two months due to the pandemic. Zomato also fired 13 per cent of its 4,000-employees, while Swiggy had let go of 1,100 staff.

‘Today is an incredibly sad day for colleagues leaving the Uber family and all of us at the company. We made the decision now so we can look to the future with confidence. I want to apologize to departing colleagues, and extend my heartfelt thanks to them for their contributions to Uber and the riders and driver-partners we serve in India,’ Parameswaran added.d

Uber Technologies had said that nearly 6,700 jobs will be affected, including 3,700 announced earlier this month, and will focus on its core businesses in ride-hailing and food delivery.

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