Uber exec asked to resign over harassment history

The SVP was encouraged to step down after failing to disclose a sexual harassment claim at his previous workplace.

BY HRM 02 Mar 2017

Barely a month into his job, Uber senior vice president Amit Singhal was asked to resign for failing to disclose a sexual harassment claim at his previous workplace.

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick asked Singhal to resign after technology news website Recode informed the company of the latter’s sexual harassment allegations during his tenure in Google, Reuters reported.

An Uber spokesperson said Singhal was hired in January, but he did not disclose the allegations, nor were they revealed by reference checks.

“Harassment is unacceptable in any setting. I certainly want everyone to know that I do not condone and have not committed such behavior,” Singhal told Recode. “In my 20-year career, I’ve never been accused of anything like this before and the decision to leave Google was my own.”

Singhal led Google's search division and left the firm in 2016 after 15 years, Reuters reported. He announced his plan to join Uber in January, saying he would work closely with Kalanick on the company's self-driving car program.

SInghal’s resignation comes as Uber is investigating claims of sexual harassment within its own organisation.

In a blog post published on February 19, former software engineer Susan Fowler claimed she was propositioned by her manager, and that human resources failed to do enough to address the incident.

In another of Fowler’s allegations, managers said the company wouldn’t order leather jackets for female employees "because there were not enough women in the organisation to justify placing an order."