Uber Fires More Than 20 Employees in Harassment Probe • Hacker News Board

Re: Uber Fires More Than 20 Employees in Harassment Probe

#51

Post by erikpukinskis » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 6:23 PM UTC

ThrustVectoring wrote: post #6

The article doesn't discuss the seniority of the fired employees. It's very hard to distinguish between scapegoating and actually working to fix the problem without that information. The problem with Uber isn't that some employees engage in sexual harassment. The problem is that there's a culture where sexual harassment isn't taken seriously, is tolerated if the perpetrators are "high performing" in other respects, a…

Um, it's not scapegoating if these people are harassing other employees. Scapegoating is when you hire underlings for projects that senior management was driving. No one forces you to harass another employee.

Re: Uber Fires More Than 20 Employees in Harassment Probe

#52

Post by [deleted] » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 6:23 PM UTC

ThrustVectoring wrote: post #6

The article doesn't discuss the seniority of the fired employees. It's very hard to distinguish between scapegoating and actually working to fix the problem without that information. The problem with Uber isn't that some employees engage in sexual harassment. The problem is that there's a culture where sexual harassment isn't taken seriously, is tolerated if the perpetrators are "high performing" in other respects, a…

[deleted]

Re: Uber Fires More Than 20 Employees in Harassment Probe

#53

Post by user5994461 » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 6:24 PM UTC

tdicola wrote: post #45

hueving wrote: post #7

I wonder if events like this turn Uber employees who leave around this time into a market of lemons. Obviously nobody will put on their resume that they were fired for sexual harassment so hiring managers will have to wonder if a person who left Uber recently was fed up or fired. Seems risky to hire a recent Uber employee at this point because bringing a toxic sexist into the company can inflict massive damage.

That's why you list references from your last job and people call them to see what kind of person you were while there.

You never list references from your last job.

You don't want your future company to call your current company to give them a heads up that you are leaving.

For this very same reason, companies never ask for reference from your current job.

Re: Uber Fires More Than 20 Employees in Harassment Probe

#54

Post by foolfoolz » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 6:24 PM UTC

tdicola wrote: post #45

hueving wrote: post #7

I wonder if events like this turn Uber employees who leave around this time into a market of lemons. Obviously nobody will put on their resume that they were fired for sexual harassment so hiring managers will have to wonder if a person who left Uber recently was fed up or fired. Seems risky to hire a recent Uber employee at this point because bringing a toxic sexist into the company can inflict massive damage.

That's why you list references from your last job and people call them to see what kind of person you were while there.

reference checks are useless. if you list HR they can only confirm employment. If you list your friends they going to say good things. if you list anyone else you are doing it wrong

Re: Uber Fires More Than 20 Employees in Harassment Probe

#55

Post by vkou » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 6:25 PM UTC

macspoofing wrote: post #34

hueving wrote: post #7

I wonder if events like this turn Uber employees who leave around this time into a market of lemons. Obviously nobody will put on their resume that they were fired for sexual harassment so hiring managers will have to wonder if a person who left Uber recently was fed up or fired. Seems risky to hire a recent Uber employee at this point because bringing a toxic sexist into the company can inflict massive damage.

>Seems risky to hire a recent Uber employee at this point because bringing a toxic sexist into the company can inflict massive damage. Jesus. They are still people. You want to ostracize them from all society and prevent them from earning a living in their chosen career? 'Sexual harassment' is also a catch-all term that can encompass all kinds of actions. It could involve a clueless, inexperienced 20-something asking…

As a manager, if you have a clueless 20-year old making an inappropriate proposition to one of your reports, and you hear about it, you are legally obligated to deal with the situation. It could mean reprimands, demotions, pay cuts, and re-assignment. It could mean termination.

Harassment happens in every single company.

The difference between companies is whether or not management takes the problem seriously.

I assure you, batch-firing 20 people for sexual harassment out of 6,700 is not normal. It means that there has been a consistent pattern of management not dealing with harassment - which was exposed upon review.

Re: Uber Fires More Than 20 Employees in Harassment Probe

#56

Post by ThrustVectoring » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 6:25 PM UTC

macspoofing wrote: post #19

ThrustVectoring wrote: post #6

The article doesn't discuss the seniority of the fired employees. It's very hard to distinguish between scapegoating and actually working to fix the problem without that information. The problem with Uber isn't that some employees engage in sexual harassment. The problem is that there's a culture where sexual harassment isn't taken seriously, is tolerated if the perpetrators are "high performing" in other respects, a…

>The problem is that there's a culture where sexual harassment isn't taken seriously Is there? I've seen people claim this but I haven't seen any evidence for it. I know Susan Fowler's account is used frequently as basis for that statement and though I don't doubt her sincerity and truthfulness, you can't just extrapolate her experience to the entire (global) company.

In a culture where sexual harassment is taken seriously, the firings happen one-at-a-time as things get reported. It doesn't fester until the media spotlight shines on the company's cultural problems, then result in an investigation as to why things got so bad.

Re: Uber Fires More Than 20 Employees in Harassment Probe

#57

Post by randyrand » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 6:25 PM UTC

I just want to say, for every person in disgust of Uber and their sexual harassment scenario, there are many more of us that just don't care.

Of course, most that don't care don't comment. So the comment section is not a good view of public opinion. Just the vocal minority.

Re: Uber Fires More Than 20 Employees in Harassment Probe

#58

Post by tmh79 » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 6:26 PM UTC

djsumdog wrote: post #14

Feels somewhat symbolic at this point. The massively corrupt shop decides to fire a bunch of people who max out the acceptable level of corruption. Even how they hired Holder feels like a PR tactic; a man who was against all the US torture techniques ( http://fightthefuture.org/articles/the-rescue-of-eric-holder... ) and yet prosecuted no one. He is the image of a career, PR frontman. I'm still going to take Lyft ove…

EH has has a long working relationship with uber. The main work he has done previously was to help either craft policy and work in the courts to defend the ability for marginalized communities to work as ridesharing drivers, think people like non violent felons who are released from prison. A while ago a lot of state were passing "think of the children" type legislation that was having a negative impact on some of the communities that holder has spent his career trying to defend. For felons released from prison, ridesharing on uber/lyft is one of the first ways they can support themselves economically.

Re: Uber Fires More Than 20 Employees in Harassment Probe

#59

Post by vkou » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 6:26 PM UTC

mikeyouse wrote: post #22

hendzen wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the business world, people typically cite profit/employee or revenue/employee. It's only in SV that people cite valuation/employee..

They're on a run rate of ~$14 billion in 2017 revenue based on their Q1 numbers, so call it $1.2 million per employee in revenue.

I can have a run rate of infinity dollars, if my business model consists of selling $20 bills for $19.

What's their revenue minus costs of revenue?

Re: Uber Fires More Than 20 Employees in Harassment Probe

#60

Post by tedivm » Tue, Jun 06, 2017, 6:26 PM UTC

ASinclair wrote: post #21

hueving wrote: post #7

I wonder if events like this turn Uber employees who leave around this time into a market of lemons. Obviously nobody will put on their resume that they were fired for sexual harassment so hiring managers will have to wonder if a person who left Uber recently was fed up or fired. Seems risky to hire a recent Uber employee at this point because bringing a toxic sexist into the company can inflict massive damage.

The easy way to avoid this would be to hire people still employed by Uber. I'd say most people don't quit their job then start the interviewing process. Usually people quit once they have a new job lined up.

I have the exact opposite experience- most of the people I know here in the bay area embrace "funemployment" by having a break between leaving their jobs and getting a new one. At a minimum I wouldn't use it as a heuristic for whether the person is hirable or not.