PHILIPPINE employees of Singapore-based Grab Holdings Ltd. will be affected by the mass layoff which the ride-hailing company announced on Wednesday.
“[We] can confirm that the Philippines is affected too — but again, we won’t be providing any numbers or breakdowns,” Grab Philippines said in a statement.
According to the local transport network company, it has already sent out notices to employees it will be laying off.
“It is a very difficult period also for us because we are letting go of our employees. The focus right now is to make sure that we look after those who are staying and those who are also leaving,” said Grab Philippines, or MyTaxi.PH, Inc.
Anthony Tan, Grab’s group chief executive officer, announced in a statement on Tuesday night that the company will be laying off 1,000 employees.
Multinational technology company Grab operates in Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam.
“I want to be clear that we are not doing this as a shortcut to profitability. Over the past couple of years, we’ve been consistent in managing costs tightly in all areas of our operations and on improving platform efficiency,” said Mr. Tan, who is Grab’s co-founder.
He said the reorganization of the group is meant to help the company adapt to the changing landscape of digital services.
“The primary goal of this exercise is to strategically reorganize ourselves, so that we can move faster, work smarter, and rebalance our resources across our portfolio in line with our longer-term strategies,” he said.
Amid the announcements of a mass layoff, digital advocacy group Digital Pinoys sought assistance from the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE).
“[The DICT and DoLE] should check if there are Filipinos affected by the massive layoff of Grab employees and ensure that their rights and welfare under Philippine Laws are followed,” said Ronald Gustilo, national campaigner of Digital Pinoys, in a statement on Thursday.
“Tech companies should respect Philippine labor laws. If they are to terminate any Filipino employee, regardless of the nature of employment, it should still comply with our labor code. Our agencies should ensure that these laws are implemented,” he added.
Sought for comment, Grab said in a statement: “Of course, we will follow. That is the goal. Our commitment is that we will follow the policies and laws for each specific market and that also includes the Philippines.”
In his letter to Grab employees, Mr. Tan enumerated the support that the company will provide, which includes severance pay, goodwill payment of an ex gratia amount, encashment of unused annual leave and GrabFlex credits, extended medical insurance coverage, maternity and paternity leave encashment, and completion bonus.
In 2020, the company announced a mass layoff that affected 360 employees. — Justine Irish D. Tabile
