Driving seat: Uber picks up former British Airways exec as UK lead
A former Aviva and British Airways executive has been selected to take a role in the driving seat of Uber’s UK division.
Andrew Brem will tomorrow be named as the company’s UK general manager, City PM has learned. Brem will replace Ash Kebriti, who is tapped to move to a new role at Uber, and will report to Jamie Heywood, the company’s general manager for Northern Europe.
News of the hire comes a matter of weeks after Uber secured a licence to continue operating in London for the next two and a half years.
Uber has faced a string of legal battles to secure its right to offer services to UK customers. Uber successfully appealed a decision by Transport for London to deny the company a license and effectively bar the app from the UK’s capital.
In February the company was informed its base of 70,000 UK drivers must be treated as workers rather than self-employed, meaning they are entitled to holiday pay and the minimum wage.
“Uber is one of the most exciting technology companies in the world as it continues to change the way we move around our cities,” Brem said in a statement.
“The UK has led the way globally in driving forward Uber’s electrification efforts, as well as providing all UK drivers with worker protections such as holiday pay and a pension in what was an industry first,” he continued.
Brem has 30 years experience of leading the operations and digital transformation of major corporations such as Asda, Aviva and British Gas, where he launched Hive.
Most recently Andrew served as Chief Commercial Officer at British Airways where he oversaw the airline’s commercial operations during the unprecedented pandemic period.
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