It’s been a rough few days for the country since Donald Trump was elected President of the United States. After the initial shock wore off, comments from the media elite, government leaders, and companies from all over the country served to either comfort or worry people even further — no matter who they might have voted for. New Balance was the first major company to elicit some serious criticism after they released a statement seemingly in support of President-Elect Trump, and now the CEO of Grubhub is receiving similar backlash for doing exactly the opposite.
Matt Maloney, head of Grubhub, sent an email to the entire company on Thursday outlining all the ways he disagrees with Trump’s his future presidency including his “nationalist, anti-immigrant and hateful politics.” The most infuriating parts of the email for many employees and those in the general public that are mad at Maloney included passages like,
“While demeaning, insulting and ridiculing minorities, immigrants and the physically/mentally disabled worked for Mr. Trump, I want to be clear that his behavior – and these views, have no place at Grubhub. Had he worked here, many of his comments would have resulted in his immediate termination. If you do not agree with this statement then please reply to this email with your resignation because you have no place here. We do not tolerate hateful attitudes on our team.”
Maloney later clarified that he did not mean to insinuate that anybody who decided to vote for Trump should quit their job, only that anybody who shares his brand of political views and discrimination is not welcome in a company that hopes to foster as inclusive and welcoming an environment as possible. He even reiterated Hillary’s comments that Trump should at least be given a chance once he takes office. Even with that adjustment of his intention, Grubhub users and detractors are not having it. A hashtag call to #boycottgrubhub has arisen and some of the messages are the exact opposite of positive and heartwarming.
Wow! @Grubhub CEO committed career suicide by alienating half of the country. Smart move clown. You're a hypocrite! #boycottgrubhub
— Anthony Lombardi (@alombs) November 11, 2016
https://twitter.com/Billhic02785574/status/796895368126545922
Company used @Grubhub for clients ($6-9k monthly) boss just told us to never use it again because they "hate free speech" #boycottgrubhub
— Rosie Memos (@almostjingo) November 11, 2016
So GrubHub CEO is talking about how hateful and intolerant someone is, by being hateful and intolerant of different views?🤔#boycottgrubhub
— I Am Leah (@Bossy_Leah) November 11, 2016
https://twitter.com/UshiromiyaBungl/status/796905753734946816
https://twitter.com/WerIstDeinPa/status/796918259559731204
@Grubhub You have the right to your ill advised public opinion just as we as consumers can choose to never use your service. #boycottgrubhub
— OCDLawnGuy (@OCDLawnGuy) November 11, 2016
https://twitter.com/MarkDice/status/796916976119468032
While some people may be missing the difference between actual intolerance and not standing for discrimination and racism (unending bigotry isn’t the same as having a “different view”) the CEO of a public company deciding to be so outspoken without fact checking his words for ways that they can be misconstrued is not the smartest idea either. It’s probably safe to say that all the backtracking in the world isn’t going to convince some conservative users to re-install that app in the near future.
As to which company will be the next to receive intense backlash from one side of the aisle or the other, it’s only a matter of time before another company-wide email or public comment whips the public up into a frenzy.
(via The Chicago Tribune)
