# Former engineer says Uber is a nightmare of sexism



## BurgerTiime (Jun 22, 2015)

http://www.theverge.com/2017/2/19/14664474/uber-sexism-allegations








A former Uber engineer has published an explosive account of sexism and power struggles in the workplace, with allegations beginning from her very first official day with the company. The engineer, Susan Fowler (who left Uber in December and now works for Stripe), posted the account to her blog on Sunday, calling it a "strange, fascinating, and slightly horrifying story." It is indeed horrifying.

Sexism is a well-documented problem in Silicon Valley, but the particulars of Fowler's account are astounding. She says problems began on day one, when her manager accosted her with details of his sex life:

In my first official day rotating on the team, my new manager sent me a string of messages over company chat. He was in an open relationship, he said, and his girlfriend was having an easy time finding new partners but he wasn't. He was trying to stay out of trouble at work, he said, but he couldn't help getting in trouble, because he was looking for women to have sex with. It was clear that he was trying to get me to have sex with him, and it was so clearly out of line that I immediately took screenshots of these chat messages and reported him to HR.

Fowler was pressured to remain under a manager who sexually harassed her, according to her account. She says HR responded by saying the company "wouldn't feel comfortable" giving him more than a warning. She says she was then given a choice to leave her team, or continue doing her work - with the understanding it could result in a bad performance review from the manager who harassed her.

From there, Fowler's journey only gets bleaker. She describes a "_Game of Thrones _political war" among upper management in the engineering department, with managers openly trying to sabotage and conquer each other:

It seemed like every manager was fighting their peers and attempting to undermine their direct supervisor so that they could have their direct supervisor's job. No attempts were made by these managers to hide what they were doing: they boasted about it in meetings, told their direct reports about it, and the like.

We all lived under fear that our teams would be dissolved, there would be another re-org, and we'd have to start on yet another new project with an impossible deadline. It was an organization in complete, unrelenting chaos.

Her account of her time at the company also includes efforts by her managers to undermine her sense of reality and accomplishment. She says glowing performance reviews were later altered to justify holding her back from promotion. Even her own HR department tried to squash her protest for decent treatment, allegedly suggesting she was the "common theme" in her complaints, and that "it was unprofessional to report things via email to HR." (Telling women not to complain is a hallmark of sexist organizations.) She says she was repeatedly denied transfers to other parts of the organization.

We asked Uber for comment on these allegations, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

Uber has had plenty of high-profile controversy in the past, including problems with high-ranking executives. In 2014, Uber vice president Emil Michael threatened _Pando Daily_ editor-in-chief Sarah Lacy with a smear campaign. Uber CEO Travis Kalanick later said those remarks "showed a lack of leadership, a lack of humanity, and a departure from our values and ideals."

In the most bizarre part of the account, Fowler describes how a senior manager promised to order leather jackets for all of the site reliability engineers - but at the last minute informed the women on the team that they would not be receiving any, because there were not enough women to justify the expense. (She says there were only six women.) Fowler says more than 120 men received their jackets, and that the manager said it wouldn't be fair to order women's jackets unless they could find a way to receive a bulk discount like the men.

Fowler says that when she joined Uber, women represented 25% of the organization she worked in. On her last day, she says that number was down to 3%.

Update:
*A former Uber employee's disturbing claims of workplace sexism reignite calls to #deleteUber*
http://www.recode.net/2017/2/20/14666572/uber-sexism-susan-fowler-delete-uber


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## SuperStar3000 (Jun 16, 2016)

This looks like a planted story, based on all the other news outlets releasing the same narrative at the same time.

It's a red herring piece, and has no relevance to the real issues we have with Uber.


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## grams777 (Jun 13, 2014)

Direct link to her blog entry with more details:

https://www.susanjfowler.com/blog/2017/2/19/reflecting-on-one-very-strange-year-at-uber


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## ChortlingCrison (Mar 30, 2016)

Not surprising in the least. Travis used to brag about getting "tail" whenever he wanted.


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## Amsoil Uber Connect (Jan 14, 2015)

SuperStar3000 said:


> This looks like a planted story, based on all the other news outlets releasing the same narrative at the same time.
> 
> It's a red herring piece, and has *no relevance to the real issues we have with Uber.*


True. It's no wonder why they are so disfunctional.

Hey I drove a dancer to the Spearmint Rhino the other day. Does that count ?


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## Trump Economics (Jul 29, 2015)

Do I focus on #deleteuber, the sh** show Q&A with drivers, or the sexual harassment? It's all happening too fast -- I'm so confused!


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## DexNex (Apr 18, 2015)

Guess I will be taking more Lyft pax again this week.


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## arcterus (Oct 31, 2014)

SuperStar3000 said:


> This looks like a planted story, based on all the other news outlets releasing the same narrative at the same time.
> 
> It's a red herring piece, and has no relevance to the real issues we have with Uber.


But these are the same tactics that Uber uses with everything they put out. They just have somebody from the inside now doing it back to them.

Read her blog directly, and see how HR treats her. It's the same absurd logic Uber drivers have to put up with. I think it's absolutely relevant.

Travis is going to have to cut a healthy check to keep this from becoming #deleteUberthesequel. Karma is such a b****.


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

Trump Economics said:


> Do I focus on #deleteuber, the sh**-show Q&A with drivers, or the sexual harassment? It's all happening too fast -- I'm so confused!
> 
> View attachment 98994


Hue and Cry of Media Vulture Dance.



arcterus said:


> But these are the same tactics that Uber uses with everything they put out. They just have somebody from the inside now doing it back to them.
> 
> Read her blog directly, and see how HR treats her. It's the same absurd logic Uber drivers have to put up with. I think it's absolutely relevant.
> 
> Travis is going to have to cut a healthy check to keep this from becoming #deleteUberthesequel. Karma is such a b****.


If only they would have given her that leather jacket . . .


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## roadman (Nov 14, 2016)

can't we just drone Uber?


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

roadman said:


> can't we just drone Uber?


We could,but then what ?


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## SurgeWarrior (Jun 18, 2016)

Wow, fking the drivers wasnt good enough now they try to fk over the engineers..good for her! #deleteuber


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## vesolehome (Aug 2, 2015)

More women using Lyft now as they defect from Uber. Cool! 
Wait, was that sexist


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## uberdriverfornow (Jan 10, 2016)

This mirrors the same arrogant attitude drivers, municipalites, and riders have had to deal with. Nobody is going to have a problem believing her account.


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## SurgeWarrior (Jun 18, 2016)

uberdriverfornow said:


> This mirrors the same arrogant attitude drivers, municipalites, and riders have had to deal with. Nobody is going to have a problem believing her account.


Agreed! I for one am rooting for the engineer to get her pound of flesh off travis. It sad when most drivers want to see their partnered company brought down..reap what you sow Travis!


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## dirtylee (Sep 2, 2015)

Sounds like a fun, challenging, competitive place to work if you're a guy. 

This is going to sound terrible but places ran like a frat house gone amok actually get shit done. I've worked in them, it's unbelievable how much is able to get accomplished.


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## Wardell Curry (Jul 9, 2016)

I swear whenever lyft becomes bigger than uber, i say sayonara. Pink mustache it is.


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## Elmo Burrito (Feb 3, 2017)

Just one more substantiation for me that some, if not all of these managers and some, if not all HR are following TK in a total depravity of systemic, rampant, business ethics violations at Uber.

If Uber doesn't veer off the current course where they, suppress truth tellers, make scape goats out of whistle blowers. Abett, promote, praise and reward duche bags in HR and management. 

They are reaching critical mass. Perhaps, they have already, and we are watching the awful trainwreck with our own eyes. 

TK, everyone is telling you buddy, pull up! Uber is starting to come down like a proverbial house of cards!

Then what will be of your grandiose rideshare genius? Your Autonomous Car dreams? 

Like the Dolorean, the Spruce Goose, and the Space Shuttle, it will all be on the ash heap of history.


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## NorthNJLyftacular (Feb 2, 2017)

Uber is a company that would rather pay millions to settle a lawsuit than spend $6,000 for some girly leather jackets.


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## TheFixer1 (Jan 29, 2017)

SuperStar3000 said:


> This looks like a planted story, based on all the other news outlets releasing the same narrative at the same time.
> 
> It's a red herring piece, and has no relevance to the real issues we have with Uber.


Is that you TK


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## Who is John Galt? (Sep 28, 2016)

As the Übes are fond of responding to every driver's communication:

...."Thanks for Reaching Out".....


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## Taxi Driver in Arizona (Mar 18, 2015)

Who is John Galt? said:


> As the Übes are fond of responding to every driver's communication:
> 
> ...."Thanks for Reaching Out".....


Reaching out and grabbing them by the p***y!


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

BurgerTiime said:


> http://www.theverge.com/2017/2/19/14664474/uber-sexism-allegations
> 
> 
> 
> ...


SEXUAL HARRASSMENT AT UBER ?!?!? UNHEARD OF !
ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS !
LETS CALL ERIC HOLDER IN TO INVESTIGATE !


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## Jinxstone (Feb 19, 2016)

She had no problem working for Uber when it was only drivers that were being exploited. As soon as it was her turn it's time to call the lawyers. I don't feel very sorry for her but do wish her well with the suit because, after all, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.


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## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

Jinxstone said:


> She had no problem working for Uber when it was only drivers that were being exploited. As soon as it was her turn it's time to call the lawyers. I don't feel very sorry for her but do wish her well with the suit because, after all, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.


Well,at least her team got the App. Working right ! It was a nightmare back then !


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## Hunt to Eat (Nov 19, 2015)

SuperStar3000 said:


> This looks like a planted story, based on all the other news outlets releasing the same narrative at the same time.
> 
> It's a red herring piece, and has no relevance to the real issues we have with Uber.


Did you notice how you cited no references to support your comment? We did.


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## Uberhousewife (Feb 19, 2017)

https://uberpeople.net/xfa-blog-entry/uber-feminist-susan-fowler-needs-to-earn-her-m-r-s-degree.80/

I just wrote a blog entry about why Susan Fowler needs to earn her M.R.S. degree. Uber needs to spend more time protecting female drivers who don't want to be penalized for cancelling or rejecting rides with people who don't seem safe. I won't even say "men," because I (almost)picked up a woman who was drunk, unstable and threatening. I did not accept the ride. Susan Fowler is complaining about messages on her computer! If that's sexual harassment, all 100 men I dated from the 90's on AOL would have lost their jobs.


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## vegasheat (Jul 13, 2016)

Are you surprised? Uber is a slime ball company

Delete Uber and go postmates and Lyft. Don't support the beast


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## TheFixer1 (Jan 29, 2017)

vegasheat said:


> Are you surprised? Uber is a slime ball company
> 
> Delete Uber and go postmates and Lyft. Don't support the beast


They are all one and the same, don't be fooled.


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## elelegido (Sep 24, 2014)

When did software developer geeks start calling themselves "engineers"?


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