The Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB) is taking food courier service firm Deliveroo to the Supreme Court to challenge the company’s denial of collective bargaining rights to its self-employed workers.
The IWGB says that this stance goes against a recognition deal that the gig economy platform signed with the GMB union, through which Deliveroo has committed to negotiating with the GMB over certain employment conditions. The GMB has said that the deal, which began this month, will enable it to negotiate earnings on behalf of around 90,000 Deliveroo couriers.
Through its Supreme Court challenge, the IWGB aims to force Deliveroo to classify its couriers, who are currently designated as independent contractors, as workers. In a statement, the IWGB said: “A victory would set a precedent for collective bargaining rights across the gig-economy, and it would pave the way for a future worker status claim to ensure that Deliveroo couriers have both basic worker rights and flexibility.”
According to the IWGB, Deliveroo’s agreement with the GMB does not tackle several issues with employment practices at the firm, such as a lack of pensions or holiday pay, and does not address causes of low pay, such as unpaid waiting times to collect orders at restaurants and over-hiring.
IWGB President Alex Marshall, a former courier, said: “It is outrageous that Deliveroo is continuing to spend hundreds of thousands of pounds fighting the IWGB in court over collective bargaining rights when it has just granted collective bargaining rights to another unrepresentative union.”
“Clearly, Deliveroo accepts the legitimacy of collective bargaining for couriers but is simply not prepared to engage in collective bargaining with the union that has the largest membership of gig-economy couriers. Deliveroo should be investing this money in courier pay and conditions, rather than trying to silence its workers who only want a seat at the table.”
Responding to the case, Deliveroo said that it focused “solely on very narrow issues related to the right to collective bargaining in the UK.” The firm added that its couriers were able to “be their own boss” and that its agreement with the GMB gave riders “guaranteed earnings, representation and benefits”.
