Uber stands up for women

Uber has announced its vision to create 50,000 jobs for women in India by 2020. The company has also partnered with iCare Life to train and create jobs for women in India on the Uber platform. Uber aims to endow women with the skill set and knowledge necessary to provide a safe and high quality service in a traditionally male-dominated industry.

iCare Life will provide content and training material based on clearly-defined service standards formulated by its Singapore headquarters. The training content is deployed locally using advanced blended learning techniques across 6-Indian languages through individual tablet computers that allows each trainee to learn at their own pace, passing various assessment levels and finally attaining certification.

Revathi Roy, sr associate vice president, iCare, said, "We are so thrilled to partner with Uber on this initiative, because we believe in creating sustainable economic and employment opportunities for women from resource-poor communities in India. This goes a long way in motivating and empowering more women to receive training so they can embark on a rewarding career and become financially independent."

A July 2014 report by Oxfam showed that in India, women's wages are only 64% of male wages. Uber intends to provide women with direct access to a flexible, equitable earning platform, helping them cultivate skills and become small business owners while providing safe and reliable transportation for the community.

"Uber's program will help empower and bring unrivalled economic opportunities and entrepreneurship to women from socially excluded backgrounds and communities," said Ms. Deval Delivala, India Safety Lead for Uber. "This pilot initiative with iCare Life is an important part of our mission to achieve equality and economic viability for tens of thousands of women in India." When asked whether it was taking the step in a bid to improve its image, the company, whose application for a licence under the transport department's modified radio taxi scheme is pending, it said that the initiative was part of its global tie- up with UN Women to create safe job opportunities for women.