Airport cabbies strike again in protest of Uber, Lyft

“The National Coalition for Homeless Veterans estimates that 68 percent of these veterans reside in cities where a lack of reliable transportation makes it hard to reach much-needed services and employment opportunities”. More than 90% are male, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Jill Biden’s Joining Forces program, tasked with honoring and assisting American military veterans and their families, has announced that Uber and Lyft have committed to assisting thousands of veterans by donating free rides, which will be “be administered by the employment counselors who work with [those vets] every week”. The two companies, who compete fiercely in the ever growing ride-sharing industry, united in an effort to address veteran homelessness throughout the country.

As part of Veterans Day, the pair have announced an initiative to help unemployed and homeless veterans get back on their feet by offering free rides to job interviews.

Uber will contribute an estimated 10,000 rides – a value of $125,000 – over the coming year, Emil Michael, Senior Vice president of Business for Uber said on the company’s blog post. Those who choose to donate this way will receive an SMS text message after, but will need to reply “Yes” to Uber to complete the process.

This isn’t the first time for Uber to show support for the nation’s servicemen and women. More than 40,000 veterans have joined the driver platform since the launch of the initiative, according to Uber. A year ago, Uber started the UberMILITARY campaign to help veterans find work with Uber and access suitable vehicles. PenFed Foundation will provide emergency assistance for veterans experiencing a financial hardship and Walmart is asking customers to change one light bulb in their home to glow green as a “symbol of appreciation”.