LAHORE: If the job vacancies on Uber's website are anything to go by, the app-based transportation service is making inroads into Pakistan.
The 'Careers' page on the Uber website shows job openings for a General Manager, Marketing Manager and Operations and Logistics Manager in Lahore.
Senior Associate Communications for Middle East & Africa Shaden Abdellatif in an email statement to the ValueWalk website has confirmed the news.
"We can confirm we are currently recruiting for a team in Lahore, and are very excited about launching in Pakistan as we see huge potential in the way we can help people move around their city safely and reliably."
"We are also excited about the opportunity for economic empowerment we can bring to the drivers we partner with," Abdellatif was quoted by the website.
Today, Uber is Silicon Valley’s most visible start-up with a market value of $50 billion. It is present in 340 cities with three million trips taken daily, according to the company’s latest figures.
Uber does not employ drivers or own its vehicles, but instead uses non-professionally licensed contractors with their own cars. It therefore considers itself a player in the "sharing economy", which allows the drivers to operate their own business.
Once they have an account, users can call an Uber car with a couple of swipes on their smartphone, instead of having to book a taxi or waiting on a street corner waving their arm.
Taxi operators say it represents unfair competition because Uber drivers can flout the rules and restrictions that regulate the professionals.
The firm is led by the hard charging Chief Executive Officer Travis Kalanick, a 39-year-old Californian who has accused city authorities of being beholden to taxi monopolies.
The regulated taxi industry "feels threatened by our high quality service and quick response time", Kalanick had said in a 2013 interview with AFP.
Also read: Uber-like service for rickshaws in Lahore
