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Article

12 Feb 2024

Author:
The Guardian

Thousands of UK Deliveroo and Uber Eats drivers to strike on Valentine’s Day

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Delivery drivers for food-ordering platforms including Deliveroo and Uber Eats are staging a Valentine’s Day strike to demand better pay and conditions.

The stoppage on Wednesday is being organised by a grassroots group, Delivery Job UK, many of whose members are Brazilian. It claims to have more than 3,000 supporters in London and several other cities.

The group hopes to draw attention to the low pay and insecure conditions faced by drivers, many of whom work on several delivery apps in parallel.

App-based delivery drivers are generally classified as self-employed contractors, meaning their employers are not legally obliged to pay them the statutory “national living wage” of £10.42 an hour, due to increase to £11.44 in April.

That status was confirmed by a supreme court ruling in November that found Deliveroo riders were not “workers”, after a long-running battle by the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain for the right to unionise and bargain on their behalf...

A spokesperson for [Deliveroo] said: “Deliveroo aims to provide riders with the flexible work riders tell us they value, attractive earning opportunities and protections.

“Thousands of people apply to work with Deliveroo each month, rider retention rates are high and the overwhelming majority of riders tell us that they are satisfied working with us.”

An Uber Eats spokesperson said: “We offer a flexible way for couriers to earn by using the app when and where they choose. We know that the vast majority of couriers are satisfied with their experience on the app.”