This was a very unique experience. I had heard of Uber rescinding offers but had never experienced or seen anyone else going through it. Somehow, I experienced it myself.

I had applied for a role in core infrastructure but somehow ended up interviewing with the money team. The interviews were very easy, and I received a phone call the day after expressing their willingness to extend an offer. I had graduated from a top CS program a year prior and already had offers from a top software company and a top hedge fund, with compensation packages exceeding $250k for entry-level positions. I wanted to give Uber, one of the fastest-growing companies, a try.

The HR representative asked for my current compensation, and that's when things got strange. I inquired about opportunities in other teams, as my background wasn't particularly focused on the money team. Somehow, the HR representative told me the most obvious lie: "Uber right now, except for the money team, is looking for senior people with five or more years of work experience."

I insisted, and then he said, "You cannot shop around; that is not how the Uber hiring process works." He also stated that if I was not interested in the money team, he would not proceed with an offer. I was interviewing with Uber, not just the Uber money team.

I selected one team among many recommended by my Uber friends and informed the HR representative. My friends had contacts working on that team and knew they were hiring junior people. After that, the HR representative was unresponsive to my emails and phone calls for almost a day. (I had other pending offers due in two days.) He also failed to deliver on his promise to generate the offer within a day; it was now day four. I was very annoyed, so I asked my referral friend to find the HR representative for the team I was interested in. I emailed her and CC'ed my current HR representative.

My HR representative finally replied, again stating there was no position on that team. Given the information from my friends who had contacted team members, I knew they were hiring junior people, so my HR representative had essentially lied to my face. He also threatened not to generate an offer if I insisted on changing teams, implying it showed my lack of interest in the money team. I tolerated a lot of his nonsensical statements while still waiting for the final package.

Later, the HR representative finally said he had an update. This time, a phone call was made from his manager. The HR manager informed me they had decided to rescind the offer. He believed my inflexibility was not a fit for Uber. (I pointed out that I had expressed a desire to see other teams, and the HR representative had told me I couldn't shop around. This then somehow turned into my inflexibility.) He also collaborated with his employee, lying about the team not looking for junior people.

I am very fortunate to have received offers from other companies and am excited to join one of them. This experience has made me reflect on how Uber treats its employees, such as exploiting drivers and firing engineers. While I don't know anything about those incidents or individuals, based on my experience with them, I believe my Uber HR representative's behavior was unethical.