"Main food app rejects delivery workers’ demands; thousands go on national strike", 01 April 2025

...In the largest mobilization of app delivery workers in the city of São Paulo since the so-called #BrequeDosApps, in 2020, around 2,000 workers held a motorcade on Paulista Avenue towards the headquarters of the app iFood, in the nearby city of Osasco, on Monday (31). The protest is part of the 48-hour National Strike, organized simultaneously in around 60 Brazilian cities. It demands, among other things, an increase in the minimum rate per ride from BRL 6.50 (US$ 1.14) to BRL 10 (US$ 1.75).

After waiting for hours in the rain in Osasco, the company said “no” to the workers’ demands. Then, they left the location divided into groups formed by app delivery drivers from each area of the capital and metropolitan region to stop food deliveries from the city’s main shopping malls...

“The strike will continue. iFood didn’t give a shit [sic], but they saw that the movement was strong all over the country. And we’re going to continue because we’re going to send the message. It’s not fair what they’re doing. They fooled us, they gave us no answers, so we’re going to stop the whole country,” announced one of the strike leaders from the top of a sound truck, to loud applause...

The demands were presented by a committee of nine delivery workers who, after pressure, had a close meeting inside the company’s headquarters with João Sabino, iFood’s Public Policy director, and Johnny Borges, the company’s Social Impact director. The latter is a well-known name to delivery workers involved in mobilizations in recent years: He is responsible for dealing with workers’ movements...

BdF contacted the Brazilian Association of Mobility and Technology (Abomitec, in Portuguese), which represents companies such as iFood, Uber, Lalamove and 99. The organization said it “respects the right to demonstrate” and that the average income of delivery workers “grew 5% above inflation [in Brazil] between 2023 and 2024.”

iFood was also questioned about the reason for denying the workers’ demands, why the police mediated the delivery workers’ entry into the company building and why the meeting could not be recorded. In a statement, the delivery giant confirmed the meeting “with nine representatives of the protesters on Monday afternoon (31), at the company’s office in Osasco. Reaffirming its openness to dialog, the main demands presented by the movement were discussed and it was agreed that iFood would contact the leaders with feedback”...