Slack’s intent was to use Lyft as a valued wellness benefit for its employees. Simply put, the company offers Lyft rides as a paid benefit for employees who end up staying late at its San Francisco and New York office locations. Each employee receives a $150 monthly credit with Lyft, and can request the rides directly via the Lyft app as long as the rides originate from a Slack location.

“Safety is part of wellness,” says Robby Kwok, Slack Vice President of People. “The areas surrounding our offices are not entirely safe at night. If employees stay after 7 PM, whether it’s for work or for company social events,
Lyft is their alternative to taxis or mass transit.”

Robby points out how employees would otherwise have to wait outside for taxis or walk to get to a train or bus, and that while company shuttles might solve the risk problem departing from headquarters, they would lack Lyft’s ability to deliver riders to their own front doors.

Robby stresses that the program is not intended as an incentive for employees to work later.
“It’s a safety factor,” he says. “The choice to work late is strictly up to each employee. We appreciate it when they do, but we’re not trying to entice them into it. That’s not part of our company’s culture.”
The Lyft benefit is also extended to prospective employees from out of town who visit Slack offices for interviews.

“Giving them a Lyft ride to their interview is a good way to show people who are thinking of working for us how much we care about our employees,” says Robby.

Robby refers to the Slack’s agreement with Lyft as a true partnership.

“Lyft is a good cultural match for us,” he says. “They share our values and care about employees and customers, using technology to deliver excellent service while giving back to the community.”

He says that in addition to accomplishing the goal of keeping employees safe, Lyft effectively manages costs and increases efficiency on the back end.

“Lyft is less expensive than alternate forms of transportation. Taxi fares are higher than Lyft charges, and running a shuttle would incur costs like maintenance, drivers, and insurance. It’s really easy to use, too. The employees don’t have to submit expense reports, and Finance can pull ride expenses from the data Lyft provides — to generate reports on how much the company is spending on this benefit.”

As for employee response to the Lyft rides, the numbers speak for themselves. Sixty percent of US employees have already taken advantage of the benefit, with more than 2,000 rides requested in just one month. While the numbers are impressive, comments from Slack employees speak volumes as well.

Robby says that in the future, Slack hopes to extend the Lyft benefit beyond San Francisco and New York to its other offices. And when asked how he might describe the advantages of Lyft to a friend from another company, he doesn’t hesitate with a recommendation. “I’d say, if you want a practical way to show your employees how much you appreciate them, use Lyft rides to keep them safe at night. It’s the signal we send to our people, and it’s a powerful message.”