Tech firms slammed after new Uber sexism row

A meeting of all Uber employees had been called. The topic for discussion: a major report into the taxi app company’s culture which concluded it had a serious problem with sexism, following claims of widespread sexual harassment and discrimination and a series of scandals.

Arianna Huffington, the formidable founder of the Huffington Post and only female Uber board member, addressed the assembled staff. She announced that Travis Kalanick, Uber’s CEO who has been at the centre of the controversy, would be taking an indefinite leave of absence.

She went on to add that a new female board member had been appointed. Studies showed, she said, that one woman being on a company’s board made it more likely a second would join. So far so positive.

But then, according to leaked audio of the meeting, board member David Bonderman, who was sitting next to Huffington, leant over to tell her: “Actually what it shows is that it’s much more likely to be more talking.”

According to people present, the room was “aghast”. How could a senior board member make such a sexist comment, during a meeting about how to deal with endemic sexism?

Bonderman has since apologised and resigned, but headlines are once again full of accusations of sexism against Uber.

But some commentators have gone further. Writing in The Times, Hugo Rifkind laments the “ethical vacuum” of not just Uber, but many of Silicon Valley’s top tech firms. Apple causes “environmental disaster” by mining materials for its “horrible” iPhones factories.

Facebook is beset by scandals on fake news and inappropriate content, Amazon is deadly to high-street retailers, while Google makes copyright law an irrelevance.

“Do we care?” Rifkind asks. “Do we hell.” We still buy iPhones, and use all of the great services these companies provide.

The companies themselves often believe they are nobly forging ahead, leading the way into a new digital age. They are unlikely to check themselves.

In Europe, there are rumblings of government regulation to bring tech firms into line. But shouldn’t we, as consumers, take responsibility and vote with our feet?

Tech crunch

Yes, say some. These companies have no moral compass and can only be corrected by a show of force by consumers. Campaigns such as #DeleteUber in the US saw hundreds of thousands reject the app and switch to competitors. We need to scale this up to show these companies who’s boss.

Get real, say others. People are not going to delete helpful services like Uber, let alone stop buying iPhones. Government regulation is the only thing that can reign in these unicorns, but even that is a questionable idea given the amazing things they can create when left to their own devices.