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This would be grounds for termination for a mere peasant. When you're the boss at Uber, however, you can just apologize for condoning sexual harassment and move

This would be grounds for termination for a mere peasant. When you're the boss at Uber, however, you can just apologize for condoning sexual harassment and move along your merry way. This is a good reason for people who think sexual harassment is wrong to remove Uber from their phones.

_dark_matter_ 10y ago
I wish to hell there was a good alternative where I live. I'd pay more for it.
- coldpie 10y ago
  Are there not taxis where you live? They may be slightly less convenient (or they might not be!) but sometimes that's the price for doing the right thing.
  - hashmal 10y ago
    depending on where you are, taxis can be much, much worse. "no I won't bring you there, it's not on my way" is just one tiny example.
    - Bartweiss 10y ago
      Similarly, "no, those two addresses aren't the territory of the same company, there's no way to get there from here by cab."
  - patrickaljord 10y ago
    Taxis are even worse, they literally corrupt the government and violently threaten (and harass on social media) competition here in France.
  - Broken_Hippo 10y ago
    Some places I lived in the states, you couldn't rely on a taxi to get you to work on time. I specifically asked. You had to call when you needed it and they said you'd wait anywhere from 15 minutes to 2 hours. Nothing like being nearly 2 hours early for work when the place isn't even unlocked yet.
  - arethuza 10y ago
    The taxis here in Edinburgh are great - the problem I have is when you travel somewhere else and they are often awful: rude, attempting scams, refusing to take you somewhere.... I guess services like Uber have that advantage of relative ubiquity....
  - lfuller 10y ago
    From what I've seen, Uber is far more convenient than taxis. When I call a taxi I have to wait anywhere from 20 - 40 minutes only to ride in a usually dirty vehicle for inflated prices by an aggressive driver. Never mind the typical "our VISA machine isn't working" bit. I've literally never waited more than 5 minutes for an Uber and it's usually closer to 2 - 3. They're fast, clean, fare splitting is a non-issue, and the drivers are almost always friendly. It really is on a different level than taxis in my experience.
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- blisterpeanuts 10y ago
  You don't have any Lyft drivers where you are?
  - aianus 10y ago
    Lyft is US-only
- rdiddly 10y ago
  Would you pay less for it? Biking places in any weather and with reasonable amounts of cargo is very much a solved problem. Been doing it for years, have never needed an Uber or Lyft. Granted I don't know where you live, but moving to where this is possible, is kind of part of the deal. I moved across the country.
  - differentView 10y ago
    But I enjoy going to Costco.
    - rdiddly 10y ago
      Oh me too - look for me with my 48 rolls of TP in the trailer!
empath75 10y ago
He didn't apologize for the sexual harassment stuff, even.
- smacktoward 10y ago
  Nobody caught that on video.
- athenot 10y ago
  If I had to take a guess, his lawyers probably counseled him not to. That would be an admission and then he would get incriminated pretty quick in court. (To be clear, I still think management there should be held responsible for turning a bling eye on this stuff. It's never excusable and it's the perception of being unaccountable that keeps this stuff happening again and again.)
  - wpietri 10y ago
    Sure, lawyers will always counsel you not to. It's their job to minimize risk. But if you are getting advice from a lawyer, it's your job to decide when to listen to it. In particular, taking responsibility for a problem requires things like admitting it and apologizing. Especially so when it's a big company culture problem. If Kalanick has put short-term Uber cash flow above solving his company's culture problems, then it's a sign they are going to remain the same bro-y toxic cesspit.
rev_null 10y ago
Except, his apology wasn't for the dysfunctional culture and harassment. He was apologizing for his treatment of a driver.
- YPCrumble 10y ago
  My comment is what should happen when people in positions of power condone sexual harassment. When they issue an apology for something that is also wrong, the fact that they have also systematically condoned sexual harassment is absolutely relevant. This should be brought up until either they resign or they get fired. Then, it should be brought up about the members of the board of directors who condone his actions until they resign or are fired. Until people decide that people like this shouldn't be in positions of power, we're going to live in a society where behavior like we've seen at Uber is commonplace.
redm 10y ago
Given Travis's experience with Redswoosh [1], and to a lesser extent Scour, I doubt he put himself in a situation to be ousted from his startup by investors. I suspect it's a situation akin to Mark Zuckerburg. [2] It would probably take Garrett Camp [3] push him out. [1]: http://allthingsd.com/20111108/uber-ceo-travis-kalanick-on-how-he-failed-and-lived-to-tell-the-tale/ http://allthingsd.com/20111108/uber-ceo-travis-kalanick-on-h... [2]: http://venturebeat.com/2012/02/01/zuck-power-play/ http://venturebeat.com/2012/02/01/zuck-power-play/ [3]: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garrettcamp/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/garrettcamp/
otterley 10y ago
I'm not so sure. I don't know about Uber's specific corporate structure and bylaws, but in many corporations, the Board of Directors has the power to fire CEOs for cause. If that's the case there, Kalanick might have been on the other end of a very painful phone call with Uber's board. Yesterday's news might have been the last straw for them. Even powerful heads of successful companies have even more powerful people to answer to.
- JumpCrisscross 10y ago
  > the Board of Directors has the power to fire CEOs for cause The CEO serves at the Board's pleasure. The Board can fire them because there is too much egg in their Cobb salad.
  - vinceguidry 10y ago
    I've heard it said on another thread that the board can't actually fire Kalanick. I couldn't find anything on Wikipedia that could verify this. Anybody know if it's true?
    - venantius 10y ago
      It is likely that the board has the legal power to fire him, but not the willpower, which would be due to him having control of most of the board's voting seats.
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_dark_matter_ 10y ago

I wish to hell there was a good alternative where I live. I'd pay more for it.

coldpie 10y ago
Are there not taxis where you live? They may be slightly less convenient (or they might not be!) but sometimes that's the price for doing the right thing.
- hashmal 10y ago
  depending on where you are, taxis can be much, much worse. "no I won't bring you there, it's not on my way" is just one tiny example.
  - Bartweiss 10y ago
    Similarly, "no, those two addresses aren't the territory of the same company, there's no way to get there from here by cab."
- patrickaljord 10y ago
  Taxis are even worse, they literally corrupt the government and violently threaten (and harass on social media) competition here in France.
- Broken_Hippo 10y ago
  Some places I lived in the states, you couldn't rely on a taxi to get you to work on time. I specifically asked. You had to call when you needed it and they said you'd wait anywhere from 15 minutes to 2 hours. Nothing like being nearly 2 hours early for work when the place isn't even unlocked yet.
- arethuza 10y ago
  The taxis here in Edinburgh are great - the problem I have is when you travel somewhere else and they are often awful: rude, attempting scams, refusing to take you somewhere.... I guess services like Uber have that advantage of relative ubiquity....
- lfuller 10y ago
  From what I've seen, Uber is far more convenient than taxis. When I call a taxi I have to wait anywhere from 20 - 40 minutes only to ride in a usually dirty vehicle for inflated prices by an aggressive driver. Never mind the typical "our VISA machine isn't working" bit. I've literally never waited more than 5 minutes for an Uber and it's usually closer to 2 - 3. They're fast, clean, fare splitting is a non-issue, and the drivers are almost always friendly. It really is on a different level than taxis in my experience.
deleted 10y ago
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deleted 10y ago
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blisterpeanuts 10y ago
You don't have any Lyft drivers where you are?
- aianus 10y ago
  Lyft is US-only
rdiddly 10y ago
Would you pay less for it? Biking places in any weather and with reasonable amounts of cargo is very much a solved problem. Been doing it for years, have never needed an Uber or Lyft. Granted I don't know where you live, but moving to where this is possible, is kind of part of the deal. I moved across the country.
- differentView 10y ago
  But I enjoy going to Costco.
  - rdiddly 10y ago
    Oh me too - look for me with my 48 rolls of TP in the trailer!

empath75 10y ago

He didn't apologize for the sexual harassment stuff, even.

smacktoward 10y ago
Nobody caught that on video.
athenot 10y ago
If I had to take a guess, his lawyers probably counseled him not to. That would be an admission and then he would get incriminated pretty quick in court. (To be clear, I still think management there should be held responsible for turning a bling eye on this stuff. It's never excusable and it's the perception of being unaccountable that keeps this stuff happening again and again.)
- wpietri 10y ago
  Sure, lawyers will always counsel you not to. It's their job to minimize risk. But if you are getting advice from a lawyer, it's your job to decide when to listen to it. In particular, taking responsibility for a problem requires things like admitting it and apologizing. Especially so when it's a big company culture problem. If Kalanick has put short-term Uber cash flow above solving his company's culture problems, then it's a sign they are going to remain the same bro-y toxic cesspit.

rev_null 10y ago

Except, his apology wasn't for the dysfunctional culture and harassment. He was apologizing for his treatment of a driver.

YPCrumble 10y ago
My comment is what should happen when people in positions of power condone sexual harassment. When they issue an apology for something that is also wrong, the fact that they have also systematically condoned sexual harassment is absolutely relevant. This should be brought up until either they resign or they get fired. Then, it should be brought up about the members of the board of directors who condone his actions until they resign or are fired. Until people decide that people like this shouldn't be in positions of power, we're going to live in a society where behavior like we've seen at Uber is commonplace.

redm 10y ago

Given Travis's experience with Redswoosh [1], and to a lesser extent Scour, I doubt he put himself in a situation to be ousted from his startup by investors. I suspect it's a situation akin to Mark Zuckerburg. [2] It would probably take Garrett Camp [3] push him out. [1]: http://allthingsd.com/20111108/uber-ceo-travis-kalanick-on-how-he-failed-and-lived-to-tell-the-tale/ http://allthingsd.com/20111108/uber-ceo-travis-kalanick-on-h... [2]: http://venturebeat.com/2012/02/01/zuck-power-play/ http://venturebeat.com/2012/02/01/zuck-power-play/ [3]: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garrettcamp/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/garrettcamp/

otterley 10y ago

I'm not so sure. I don't know about Uber's specific corporate structure and bylaws, but in many corporations, the Board of Directors has the power to fire CEOs for cause. If that's the case there, Kalanick might have been on the other end of a very painful phone call with Uber's board. Yesterday's news might have been the last straw for them. Even powerful heads of successful companies have even more powerful people to answer to.

JumpCrisscross 10y ago
> the Board of Directors has the power to fire CEOs for cause The CEO serves at the Board's pleasure. The Board can fire them because there is too much egg in their Cobb salad.
- vinceguidry 10y ago
  I've heard it said on another thread that the board can't actually fire Kalanick. I couldn't find anything on Wikipedia that could verify this. Anybody know if it's true?
  - venantius 10y ago
    It is likely that the board has the legal power to fire him, but not the willpower, which would be due to him having control of most of the board's voting seats.

deleted 10y ago

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