Uber Employees Are Questioning Arianna Huffington’s Role In The
Internal Sexism Investigation
Some Uber employees are frustrated by board member
Arianna Huffington's role overseeing the ride-hail giant's internal investigation into sexism allegations, citing her close relationship with CEO
Travis Kalanick and recent comments to the media.
Huffington, who joined Uber's board
last year, will on Friday afternoon meet with a group of female engineers who
plan to raise concerns about whether she can lead an impartial review of the
company's workplace practices, particularly after remarks she made on CNN. CNN
posted an interview on Monday
that quoted Huffington saying sexism was not a "systemic problem" at
Uber. On a conference call with reporters on Tuesday, Huffington said she was
referring to sexual harassment, rather than sexism broadly, and
that CNN had updated its story accordingly. Still, the interview unnerved some
Uber employees, who told BuzzFeed News they were already concerned about
whether Huffington could help lead an independent investigation into Uber's
workplace culture, given her relationship to the company and friendship with
Kalanick.
"Everyone is mad with her.
There is no way she is independent," one employee told BuzzFeed.
"Sexism versus sexual harassment — both are really demoralizing. Her
correction doesn't matter. Giving an interview without the investigation finishing
was incredibly unprofessional and careless."
Huffington told Uber employees
in an email after her call with press Tuesday that "I want to assure you
that whether sexism or sexual harassment is a systemic problem at Uber will ultimately be
determined by the investigation that Eric Holder and Tammy Albarrán are
conducting. And that the board and management team will act upon
whatever their investigation finds so that we can create a completely equitable
workplace where there is zero tolerance for both sexual harassment and
sexism."
"She's on the board. She's
qualified. But she needs to be honest about her conflicts here," another
employee said. Referring to the interview with CNN, the employee said sexism
and sexual harassment could be considered on "the same spectrum," and
also noted that it's troubling she made comments while the investigation is
ongoing.
"Arianna made this huge
fuss over pedantics," the employee said. "Before this, people
internally were already definitely worried about her not being impartial."
After Susan Fowler Rigetti
published a viral blog post
alleging systemic sexism at the ride-hail giant on Feb. 19, Uber hired former attorney
general Eric Holder to lead an internal investigation into its workplace environment.
Huffington was named to a board subcommittee that will receive and push to
implement the results of the investigation, and has become a public face for
Uber as it weathers this particular public relations crisis. She appeared
alongside Kalanick at the company's first all-hands meeting after the sexism
allegations became public.
On a call with reporters on
Tuesday, Huffington said the investigation — which is being conducted with the
help of Tammy Albarrán, a partner at Holder's law firm — will be
"completely thorough, completely independent," and presented to a
board subcommittee she sits on. "I am not conducting the
investigation," she said. Earlier in the call, Huffington noted that she
had spoken to "hundreds of employees either personally or on the
phone" in recent weeks.
Several Uber employees told
BuzzFeed News that Kalanick's handling of Uber's recent scandals has shaken
their confidence in him as a leader, noting that they've been frustrated by his apologies.
"I'm extremely unhappy and disappointed in the leadership," said one.
Other employees raised an eyebrow over Huffington's recent comments, noting
that she publicly described Kalanick as "a close friend"
in a post announcing her decision to join Uber's board and told employees at an
all-hands meeting that the Uber
CEO had been so upset by allegations of sexism at the company that she
had to cook him an omelet. (Huffington also referenced making Kalanick an
omelet in her "Why I'm Joining Uber's Board" post.) "Glad she is
taking precious care of the CEO while there is a serious disconnect going
on," one employee said of Huffington.
Huffington declined comment.
This isn't the first time Uber
employees have raised concerns about Huffington. In the winter of 2016, sources
say, a T-shirt for Huffington's Thrive Global health and wellness company with
the slogan "#SLEEPYOURWAYTOTHETOP" sparked outrage among women at
Uber, some of whom believed it was available only in women's sizes. A number of
Uber employees, complained to Huffington and Uber senior vice president Ryan
Graves. The shirt was ultimately removed from the Thrive website.
Reached for comment, Thrive sent
BuzzFeed News a screenshot indicating the company also sold the shirt in men's sizes.
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