Grab: No change in investment plan in Philippines amid regional layoffs

MANILA, Philippines — Ride-hailing giant Grab Philippines has assured the government that it would fulfill its commitment of creating 500,000 livelihood opportunities even as it laid off workers in Southeast Asia.

In a statement, Grab Philippines country head Grace Vera-Cruz said Grab would deliver on its promise to generate jobs even as it let go of 1,000 of its employees in the region.

“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 the everyday Filipino and small businesses to earn a livelihood on our platform, whether as a driver partner, a delivery partner or a merchant partner,” Vera-Cruz said.

In particular, Grab said it will keep on equipping its partners with tools, training and technology to improve productivity. Vera-Cruz said all efforts to support small-scale enterprises will remain as well in spite of the ongoing restructuring.

“The restructuring exercise neither changes our investment commitment to the government, nor does it affect our ability to ably serve Filipinos. We are accelerating our efforts to ensure that this will come to fruition, as we unlock economic empowerment through (Grab’s) robust ecosystem,” Vera-Cruz said.

In February, Grab co-founder and CEO Anthony Tan paid a courtesy call to President Marcos to inform him of Grab’s intent to generate 500,000 livelihood opportunities in the Philippines.

However, last week, Tan issued a letter informing the regional outlets of Grab that it will remove 1,000 employees across different markets.

The decision was made to strengthen Grab’s competitive advantage in Southeast Asia by having the lowest cost of operation in a bid to improve its service to partners.

Around the region, Grab pledged to compensate the workers affected by the restructuring. The firm vowed to provide financial, professional and medical support to individuals who will be retrenched by the organization.

For one, Grab will release a severance payment of half a month for every six months of service completed with the ride-hailing platform. It will issue a goodwill payment of an ex-gratia amount determined based on forgone target bonus and equity.

Grab will also extend the medical insurance of those retrenched until the end of the year subject to the terms and conditions of the insurer.

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