Dubai delivery drivers walk off job in rare protest over pay

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates –

Over the weekend, food-delivery drivers in Dubai protested wage cuts and harsh working conditions. They staged a rare strike that paralysed one of the country’s major delivery apps and raised concerns about the labour conditions in the emirate.

Deliveroo in London, which is based in London, reached an agreement with riders to raise workers’ wages to US$2.79 per shipment instead of the $2.38 suggested rate. The company was trying to cut costs as fuel prices soared and the strike began late Saturday.

Amazon-backed company also reversed its plans to increase working hours to 14 hours per day.

Deliveroo stated, “It is obvious that some our original intentions were not clear and we listen to riders.” saidThe Associated Press was informed by the statement. “We have therefore halted all changes at the moment and will work with our agency riders in order to ensure that we have a structure which works for everyone and is in our agency riders’ best interests.”

Strikes in the United Arab Emirates are still illegal. The United Arab Emirates is an autocratic union of seven sheikhdoms which bans unions and criminalizes any form of dissent. A request for comment from the Dubai government regarding the strike was not immediately answered.

The protections available to delivery workers in Dubai are limited. They were a majorstay of the financial hub during the pandemic and have been a keystay ever since.

Deliveroo, a company, outsources logistics, bikes and responsibility to contractors to reduce costs. This labor pipeline is common in the Gulf Arab countries and can lead to mistreatment. Many migrants who are poor find themselves in debt, paying exorbitant visa fees for their work.

The British food delivery company is worth more than $8 billion

Mohammadou Labarang, a 30-year-old driver, was devastated to hear about the Deliveroo pay cuts. The announcement came as fuel prices rose due to fallout from war in Ukraine.

He was already paying the UAE’s record fuel costs out of his own pocket, barely making ends meet. saidHe is supported by his wife and seven-month-old son in Cameroon.

Labarang found that he wasn’t alone when he logged onto social networking. Soon, Labarang was able to connect with his followers on social media. saidTelegram and WhatsApp had hundreds of Deliveroo drivers organizing.

According to social media footage, there were dozens of drivers who parked their bikes at Deliveroo warehouses as a protest. Some even shut down their applications. Others stayed at their accommodation. Others went to restaurants, urging fellow couriers not to leave mid-shift.

Labarang: “We saw food get cold at restaurant counters all over Dubai.” said. “It grew far above what anyone believed possible.”

Deliveroo — one of most loved delivery apps in America, especially during Ramadan’s final days — suffered a significant drop in usage over the weekend.

Some drivers sent WhatsApp messages to the AP via WhatsApp, requesting that their contracting agency managers immediately return to work and “don’t engage yourself in any illicit activity.”

Drivers were aware they could be detained and expelled for protesting. They quickly stressed that their strike was not political.

“We are well versed in the rules, and it’s not against the UAE, but we do know how sensitive it can be.” saidMohammed, a 30-year-old Pakistani driver, refused to give his last name out of fear for reprisals.

He was not. saidHe also puts his life at risk every day by zipping along Dubai’s treacherous roads without any accident insurance.

He stated, “We’re human,” saidHe climbed onto his motorbike and returned to Dubai. Delivery workers raced into restaurants and apartments in the heat of the Gulf. “We are not robots.”

11:47ET 02-05-22