Well, here’s a step in the right direction for a company that’s no stranger to controversy.
Uber recently came under fire for its poor handling of last weekend’s protests against the immigration ban. But after the hashtag #DeleteUber went viral, it looks like the tech giant is eager to redeem itself to the users it alienated with its politics: Uber just announced that, going forward, it will start donating half of its drivers’ wages to charities that help Syrian refugees.
Looks like Uber’s sending its users the message that it heard them loud and clear!
“Helping Syrian refugees is very in sync with our company values, which is why Uber is committing a massive percentage of our drivers’ wages to people affected by the U.S. travel ban,” read a statement released by the company. “We originally considered only donating 15 or 25 percent of the cut we give to our drivers, but we felt that didn’t go far enough to address this huge humanitarian crisis.”
“That is just the kind of company Uber is,” the statement adds.
What makes this gesture even more beautiful is the fact that some of Uber’s drivers are actually refugees themselves. It’s not hard to imagine their delight at finding out that their employer was committing itself to a cause that hit so close to home, and that in order to do so, their paycheck would be selflessly cut in half by a company valued at $60 billion.
“Riders can feel good knowing so much of their driver’s money is going to help war-ravaged people in Aleppo, and still pay the same low fares as before,” the company press release continues. “We are not raising our fares one cent, because 100 percent of our donations will be allocated from Uber drivers.”
Wow. It’s clear that Uber’s decision to send cars to JFK Airport to break a taxi strike initiated by immigrant cab drivers last Saturday is firmly in their rearview mirror.
So next time you open your Uber app and see those dreaded surge prices, take comfort in the fact that each mile you drive at peak hours will send even more money straight out of your driver’s pocket and into the coffers of a worthy charity.
Hey, Lyft? The ball is officially in your court.
