Uber CEO, Travis Kalanick, announced the begining of an “urgent investigation” in the private transport company, after a former employee used a blog entry to denounced harassment and prevailing sexism in the company.
What is described here is abhorrent (and) contrary to everything we believe in. Anyone who behaves that way or thinks that’s okay will be fired,”
said Kalanick on Twitter.
I have instructed Liane Hornsey (director of human resources) to conduct an urgent investigation. There can be no room for this type of behavior in Uber,”
added the CEO.
Susan Fowler, an engineer who worked at Uber until late last year, said her director made sexual advances as soon as she joined the company in late 2015.
Fowler complained to the company’s human resources department, but she was told it was the “first offense” by this man and that they did not want to punish and make a “senior executive” feel uncomfortable.
The complainant said that in the following months she met other engineers at the company who told her they had suffered similar harassment.
Following several complaints for what she believes was an inappropriate behavior, Fowler said her manager told her she was “walking on thin ice” for denouncing her boss to the human resources department.