"Uber under investigation for gender discrimination in US", 16 july 2018

[Subscription required]

Uber is under investigation by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission over accusations of gender discrimination, as the ride-hailing company continues to deal with the fallout of #metoo allegations. The probe — which could lead to compensation payouts and fines if unlawfulness is established — began in August 2017, according to a person familiar with the company. Uber's sexual harassment problems were first exposed by Susan Fowler, a former software engineer, in February last year...
Uber said the company was "continually improving" and that it had "made a lot of changes in the last 18 months, including implementing a new salary and equity structure based on the market, overhauling our performance review process, publishing Diversity & Inclusion reports, and rolling out diversity and leadership trainings to thousands of employees globally". The EEOC, which would not confirm the case, citing confidentiality, has filed several sexual harassment lawsuits against employers across the country. The commission is allowed to fine companies with more than 500 employees up to $300,000 per aggrieved individual, so the amount Uber could be fined depends on how many individuals any resulting lawsuit might represent.The probe, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, follows a difficult week for Uber in which the troubles that rocked the company last year appeared to bubble up again under new chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi...

When Mr Khosrowshahi took over from founder Travis Kalanick last year, Uber had been rocked by months of controversies, including alleged tolerance of bad behaviour and sexism that extended into the top rank, as well as clashes with regulators. The new chief executive has been working to restore the company's tarnished brand and reform its management and culture. He has rolled out a new set of "cultural norms", including "We do the right thing", and recently won back Uber's licence to operate in London.