Urban Company’s Beauty Segment Workers Face ID Blocking; Protests Emerge

Urban Company’s Gurugram office is witnessing protests once again as partners in the beauty services segment allege unfair blocking of their IDs on the platform, according to media reports. Partners claim that Urban Company blocks their IDs if they receive ratings below 4.8 out of 5 and penalises them for booking cancellations. 

The ongoing protests have lasted for two consecutive days, with blocked partners demanding the reinstatement of their IDs and an opportunity to voice their grievances. However, there is skepticism among the protestors that their IDs will be restored, despite the company’s promise to review their cases within a week. 

The issue of blocked accounts extends beyond salon service providers to partners in other segments as well. Beauticians have reported instances where the Urban Company app failed to display their availability to customers, negatively impacting their earnings. 

These protests add to the challenges faced by Urban Company, which is dealing with increasing losses amidst a funding crunch. In FY22, the company’s consolidated net loss more than doubled to Rs 514 crore compared to Rs 249.2 crore in FY21, primarily due to rising expenses.