Uber mulls laying off 20% of its staff as CTO resigns

Executives at Uber are discussing plans to cut about 20% of the company’s employees, according to a report by The Information.

The ride sharing company has taken a hit from fewer customers requesting rides, as social distancing guidelines were enacted during the coronavirus pandemic. Nevertheless, Uber Eats, the company’s food delivery arm, has reportedly seen a surge in that area of business.

The Information estimates that a layoff of that magnitude “could result in more than 5,400 of Uber’s 27,000 employees losing their jobs.”

Uber, in a statement to USA TODAY, said, “As you would expect, the company is looking at every possible scenario to ensure we get to the other side of this crisis in a stronger position than ever.”

The report comes as the company announced Tuesday its chief technology officer, Thuan Pham, was stepping down. Uber broke the news of Pham’s departure in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Coronavirus at work:Workers face ‘uphill battle’ proving firms liable if they catch COVID-19 upon reopening

Uber donates:Uber is offering 50,000 free rides, free food to shelters for domestic abuse victims

In the filing, Pham is quoted saying, “While the work is never done, I feel comfortable hanging up my hat at a time when the Uber Engineering team is at peak productivity, we have built robust system scale and stability, and are well prepared to face the future. This has been a labor of love for me, and I am so proud of what we have done as a team.”

Pham was the longest serving top executive at the company, having joined Uber in 2013.

Earlier this month, the company announced it would withdraw its forecasts for certain revenue and earnings metrics for the year.

“Given the evolving nature of COVID-19 and the uncertainty it has caused for every industry in every part of the world, it is impossible to predict with precision the pandemic’s cumulative impact on our future financial results,” the company said in a press release on April 16.

Food delivery company and competitor GrubHub also withdrew its “full year 2020 revenue and EBITDA guidance” two weeks ago, citing effects of the coronavirus pandemic.