Uber Employees Demand Travis Kalanick’s Return

Taxi hailing startup Uber’s CEO Travis Kalanick resigned earlier this week because of pressure from investors. In a letter published earlier by AXIOS, more than 1100 full time employees of the company are demanding the return of Travis Kalanick in an operational role.

The letter arose from an online petition started by Uber employees speaking in glowing terms about Kalanick and stressed the importance of the former CEO to the firm. The letter and the petition reflect a growing displeasure in the manner in which the company’s founder was asked to leave.

Uber employees could leave comments on a Google doc and sign the petition by logging in with their Uber credentials. The letter to Uber’s board said Travis was flawed but so was everyone else. It also said his passion, vision and dedication to Uber are simply unmatched. Uber employees believe Travis Kalanick can evolve into the leader they need and he is critical to their future success.

BuzzFeed News reported the petition circulated to the employees and managers alike read “Uber is TK and TK is Uber.” The email, which was sent to various employees of Uber also said employees should contact Uber board members Arianna Huffington, Garrett Camp along with former member Bill Gurley, to let them know they are unhappy with Kalanick’s resignation.

Uber’s Product Manager Micheal York in his letter said the new of Travis Kalanick’s resignation crushed him and that Travis motivated him to work better. He added he wanted the Uber Board to hear from the employees that it’s made the wrong decision in pressuring Travis to leave.

Uber replied with a statement saying “As you’d expect, the emotions around Travis’ decision are intense. We understand that, and we want all of you to know that he did not make this decision lightly.”