The relationship between Uber CEO, Travis Kalanick, and the President of the United States, Donald Trump, has been criticized online these past few days. The critics are fueled by Trump’s decision of banning the entrance for Muslims of 7 different countries into the U.S.
Kalanick posted on his personal Facebook page that the temporary 90-day ban for Muslims could harm a big amount of Uber drivers greatly. Because of this, Kalanick will join President Trump in an advisory group meeting. In the business meeting, Kalanick would raise his demands directly to Trump, as he would explain the harm this measure represents to many people.
However, lots of people started criticizing Kalanick in social media, as many think that he must not meet with President Trump in the consultative meeting that is scheduled for this Friday. Even the hashtag #DeleteUber went viral hours after the initial Facebook publication from Kalanick.
After this online revolt, the Uber CEO defended himself by saying that he will join the advisory group meeting with the “belief that by speaking up and engaging we can make a difference.”
This Trump’s advisory panel was announced last year and was called a “strategy and policy forum.” The primary objective of the group is to analyze the effects that the government policies will have on several aspects like economic growth, job creation, and productivity.
The team is led by Stephen Schwarzman, CEO of Blackstone and is formed by other prominent personalities in the business world like the CEOs of Disney, Wal-Mart, IBM and Tesla.
Uber stated that they would help drivers affected by Trump’s ban
According to Kalanick, the company will email and contact every Uber driver that could be affected by the ban, as Kalanick assures them that he would “urge the government to reinstate the right of U.S. residents to travel — whatever their country of origin — immediately.”
The company has stated that they would find a way to compensate all those Uber drivers hurt by the temporary ban. For those Uber workers that are basically trapped overseas, and that cannot come back to the United States, there will be a special aid fund of $3 million paid by Uber. The company also offered legal assistance and support to the drivers that could be up to three months stuck outside the U.S.
According to Kalanick, about a dozen of affected drivers has been contacted by Uber, as he urged any worker who thinks that the Trump measure could affect them, to reach out to the company.
“We are working out a process to identify these drivers and compensate them pro bono during the next three months to help mitigate some of the financial stress and complications with supporting their families and putting food on the table. We will have more details on this in the coming days,” Kalanick said after the online revolt.
On the other hand, Uber’s competitor Lyft will donate $1 million to the American Civil Liberties Union over the course of the next four years, an organization that has been struggling countrywide against the Trump’s banning decision.
Source: Washington Post