Maria Eracleous
In recent hours, images of delivery people from a particular digital platform participating in a protest march have circulated online, raising questions about the organizational structure for delivery persons in the restaurant and digital product distribution industries. In this instance, it is Wolt employees. Akis Stamoulis, the company's communications manager, responded to "K's" specific questions.
The strike has been ongoing for the past 24 hours, specifically since Monday night, a Wolt spokesman said. But the platform is working normally.
28 million people in the EU are employed as delivery drivers...it brings in €20 billion in revenue for the EU economy. Four platforms are active in Cyprus, (with) a few thousand delivery drivers.
-The demands of the strikers are related to their compensation, a subject that is managed by the distributor companies rather than Wolt. As he stated, Wolt has no direct business relationships with any distributor companies in Cyprus, yet 80% of its delivery drivers are affiliated with distribution firms or companies that the platform works with.
-He clarified that Wolt's payments have not been reduced and claimed that the determination of compensation is a dynamic process that is influenced by time, order distance, accessibility, and the availability of distributors. As a result, some orders receive higher payments than others, but these are controlled by the distributor companies and not by the platform.
-This only applies to delivery persons who did accept orders but did not deliver them, according to reports of blocked worker accounts. Those accounts ought to have been suspended, but none of the delivery drivers were suspended for protesting.
They'll see it in '23
Andreas Kafkalias, the chairman of the parliamentary labor committee, commented on the matter and noted that AKEL had brought up the issue in the committee back in March. With the intention of regulating the working environment for employees in the sector, the terms of employment, and the protection of their labor rights, the issue was discussed in March 2022 in the Labour Committee of the Parliament. In fact, the EU had proposed a set of measures in the form of the proposed directive a few months earlier, in December 2021. However, there hasn't been regulation on this subject yet. It is anticipated that it will be brought up once more with the reopening of the committees at a meeting in March, according to Kafkalias. It's also important to note the amendment to the Ministry of Transport that was submitted to parliament, which specifies that while operating a moped or motorcycle for work-related purposes (such as delivering food or documents), the driver must wear additional safety gear, such as a motorcycle airbag, in addition to a protective helmet.
28 million people in the EU are employed as delivery drivers, according to statistics presented in the debate on this topic last March. With about 500 platforms active, it also brings in €20 billion in revenue for the EU economy. Four platforms are reportedly active in Cyprus, and there are a few thousand delivery drivers.
[This article was translated from its Greek original]
