On September 2, 2026, Uber announced it would cut about 3300 positions — roughly 10% of its global workforce. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi sent employees a letter explaining the decision as necessary to remove excess layers of management and simplify operations.
The company will return to employment levels of 2021. The cuts will affect both managers and regular employees: the number of managers will drop by 20%, and the number of "micro-teams" of one or two people will be halved.
Khosrowshahi wrote that growth in recent years had led to excessive coordination and blurred accountability. Resources will now be redirected to key areas — ride-hailing, delivery, and robotaxis.
At the same time, Uber is tightening its remote work policy: in the future, only about 1% of employees will be able to work remotely. The rest will be required to be in office hubs.
The company's shares rose nearly 2% after the announcement. This is the largest reduction since the pandemic era.
One of those laid off is an employee with ten years of tenure, who started as a driver and rose to manager. On social media, he wrote: "It's just business, not personal. We'll all find our way."
Why would a company whose recent financial results have beaten expectations choose to make such deep changes right now?
According to Khosrowshahi, the simplified structure will allow faster decision-making and more time spent on product development rather than internal coordination.
