Uber CEO Travis Kalanick, who has been named to Donald Trump’s business advisory group, is facing massive backlash after his company broke a taxi strike at the JFK airport this weekend.
The strike was a symbolic move meant to show solidarity with immigrants and refugees who were affected by President Donald Trump’s executive order this weekend which banned travel into the United States from certain countries and halted the refugee program. However, rather than observing the strike, Uber continued to offer its services as an alternative to taxis, which many saw as a move that was not only anti-union but pro-Trump.
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Last week, Kalanick addressed concerns with employees about his relationship with Trump in particular, saying, “We’ll partner with anyone in the world as long they’re about making transportation in cities better, creating job opportunities, making it easier to get around, getting pollution out of the air and traffic off the streets.”
“It’s about the leaders we have to work with around the world, not just here in the United States but everywhere,” he added. “And being optimistic — asking can we make urban mobility better?”
On Friday, protesters chained themselves to the doors of Uber headquarters, and Uber later released this statement, saying, “As a company we’re committed to working with government on issues that affect riders, drivers and the cities where we operate. Just as we worked with the Obama Administration, we’ll work with the Trump Administration, too.”
