Deliveroo Riders Seek to Follow in Uber's Footsteps
Following the decision in the recent Uber case, where two of its drivers successfully argued they were workers and were therefore entitled to worker's rights, it seems delivery riders for Deliveroo may shortly be following the same route.
Deliveroo provides a service that delivers restaurant food to a location of the customer's choice, be it their home or their office. To deliver the food, Deliveroo uses individuals known as 'riders' who are classed as self-employed, meaning that they do not currently have any of the rights afforded to workers or employees such as paid holiday and sick pay. The riders only receive payment for the deliveries they make and therefore do not get paid for waiting time.
The Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB) has asked Deliveroo for recognition in order to allow the union to engage in collective bargaining and negotiate certain conditions, including pay for the riders. However, in the UK, collective bargaining does not apply to independent contractors, only workers.
As such, IWGB has threatened to bring legal proceedings against Deliveroo, which will decide whether or not the riders are workers, if Deliveroo refuses the request for union recognition.
Best Practice
When an employment tribunal is considering the employment status of an individual, it will have regard to the day-to-day reality of the work being undertaken and may seek to disregard any label given to the individual by the employer.
The decision in the Uber case is likely to encourage thousands of those working in the gig economy to seek worker status and enhance their rights to entitlements such as the minimum wage and paid holiday.
Businesses that engage staff as independent contractors should review the contractual documents they use and the way their business operates to determine the risk and likelihood that their workforce could be categorised as 'workers' by an employment tribunal.