Grab confirms layoffs in PH business

MANILA  -Grab Philippines said it remained committed to fulfilling its goal of providing 500,000 job opportunities here despite its parent company’s restructuring activity resulting in 1,000 employees across Southeast Asia being laid off.

The company confirmed the layoffs covered the Philippine business, but it declined to give a number.

In a statement on Monday, the super app operator dominating the local ride-hailing market said the Philippines “has always been an important market for Grab.”

“We remain steadfast in our promise to create 500,000 livelihood opportunities in the Philippines and will continue to make progress on this by creating meaningful opportunities for everyday Filipinos and small businesses to earn a livelihood on our platform, whether as a driver-partner, delivery partner, or merchant partner,” Grab Philippines country head Grace Vera-Cruz said.

Grab CEO Anthony Tan last week said a thousand employees were let go to improve cost efficiency. The restructuring program came after the company continued to register losses during the first quarter.

According to its first quarter performance, Grab registered a loss of $250 million, an improvement from the $435 million loss in the same period last year. This was supported by its revenues accelerating by 130 percent to $525 million due to growth in all segments.

Its bottom line was dragged by losses from fair value changes on investments and higher expenses, among others. In order to handle the projected operation growth albeit with fewer manpower, Tan said they already began streamlining processes in the past year.

“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,” Tan said.

The ride-hailing company added the employees discharged would be given financial support, including severance pay.

The former employees are entitled to encashment of unused accrued annual leave and maternity or paternity leaves, among others. Their medical insurance coverage will also be extended until the end of the year, “where possible, subject to local insurance terms.”

“We are aware that change may be incredibly challenging and we are prioritizing the welfare of the Grabbers who were affected by the restructuring exercise,” Vera-Cruz said.