Australian trade unions are pushing for a stronger protection for food couriers as the economy increases. Companies like UberEats and Deliveroo pay their workers by deliver and rather than by hour, which unions are now objecting to. The companies do not provide medical leave, holiday pay or help pay for medical bills for on-job injuries. Workers believe that they risk their life to deliver the food on time to customers and are not compensated fairly for it.
Even though 26 percent of couriers work equivalent “full time” hours, less than 76 percent of them made minimum wage.
“Having hourly rates would actively negate the flexibility that riders want, because it would enforce working for a single company in mandatory shifts ― essentially forcing the work to no longer be on-demand,” Deliveroo said in a statement, claiming that the average Deliveroo rider earns more than the minimum wage.
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