Uber announced on June 3 that it is cutting 23% of jobs in its People and Places division, which includes human resources, recruitment, workplace facilities, and culture teams [1, 2, 3]. The layoffs impact many senior roles within the division and represent less than 1% of Uber's global workforce of roughly 34,000 employees [1, 2, 3].
The job cuts come three weeks after Jill Hazelbaker took on an expanded role as president and chief corporate affairs officer, overseeing the People division [1, 2, 3]. Hazelbaker said the changes "address complexity, fragmentation, overlapping responsibilities, unclear ownership, and distance between teams and business partners." She explained, "As we’ve grown, parts of the organization have become too complex and fragmented, with overlapping responsibilities, unclear ownership, and teams operating too far from the businesses and partners they support" [1].
CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said the reorganization was necessary "to maximize the effectiveness of the People team and prepare for the enormous potential ahead of us." [1] He added, "These changes are necessary to maximize the effectiveness of the People team and the enormous potential ahead of us." [3]
The cuts are unrelated to Uber's artificial intelligence initiatives, a company spokesperson clarified [1, 2, 3]. However, some human resources employees who had been allowed to work remotely are now required to return to the office three days a week following a policy that began last June [1, 2].
Uber has faced stock struggles, with shares down about 14% so far in 2026 and underperforming the S&P 500 over the last year [1]. Still, the company continues hiring for more than 800 open roles, including positions related to commercializing robotaxis. Hiring has slowed somewhat due to internal AI use but remains ongoing [2, 3].
The job cuts represent a targeted effort to simplify the People and Places division after recent leadership changes. Uber is expected to move forward with the new structure under Hazelbaker's oversight in the coming months.
