Uber says it can create 50,000 jobs in Europe
The car-sharing start-up Uber can create as many as 50,000 jobs in Europe this year as part of a "new partnership" with European cities, its chief executive told a conference in Munich.
"If we can make this partnership happen, we create 50,000 new EU jobs for 2015," Uber CEO Travis Kalanick told the DLD conference, which is being held until Tuesday.
Uber could "become huge job generator," he said, without providing any concrete details.
He said the service had already created 7,500 full-time-equivalent jobs in San Francisco, 13,750 in New York, 10,000 in London and 3,750 in Paris.
The fast-growing firm, which helps users summon taxi-like services via their smartphones, has drawn criticism across the world from regulators and established taxi operators.
Set up four years ago, it now operates in 250 cities worldwide.
But critics have accused Uber of flouting competition rules and of not carrying out sufficient safety checks on drivers and their vehicles.
Uber has been hit with court injunctions in Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain, and has faced protests from taxi firms in major cities, including London.
"We want to make 2015 a year where we establish a new partnership with EU cities, where we push for progressive regulation and ensure innovation ..., where we provide massive economic benefits to cities and their economies," Kalanick said.
"How many unemployed people can come on this platform and find a way to make a living, to be part of an economic opportunity," he said.
© 2015 AFP
