Uber's Los Angeles Office Is Closed

Illustration (Pixabay)

JAKARTA - Uber Technologies Inc. (UBER.N) has closed its offices in downtown Los Angeles. This closure laid off about 80 employees.

According to the Los Angeles Times, one of the staff was notified on Thursday last week that their work would be transferred to an office in Manila. This news was delivered impromptu, without prior notice.

Uber manager Ruffin Chevaleau admitted that he was called on impromptu before passing this information on to other employees.

"We have decided to close down our LA city headquarters and we will move our outreach and innovation work to our COE Manila, where we can continue to support the business as it grows," he said, using the acronym COE meaning Center of Excellence, an in-house term for customer support hub.

"I know this is shocking. This meeting is to inform all of you that today is the last day in this office," he added.

The employees are predominantly customer support staff who are paid hourly and focused on driver outreach. They are tasked with processing paperwork, resolving account issues and explaining incentives and promotions. Uber regards its drivers and passengers as 'customers' and supports them leaving the same department.

Chevaleau told workers they would receive severance pay and could apply for jobs at Uber again. He said the company would also relocate for them to register with other Uber offices.

"This is not easy news to deliver," Chevaleau.

A few months after the company went public, Uber made a series of cuts to its corporate workforce. There are more than 1,000 workers, including those in marketing, self-driving, and engineering departments.