Dubai Deliveroo Drivers Protest Pay Cut in Rare Strike

Videos shared on social media Sunday showed dozens of the delivery men dressed in the company’s teal-green uniforms standing beside their parked motorcycles outside one of Deliveroo’s ghost kitchens, a hub for picking up meal orders. Other drivers said they didn’t show up to work and refused to log into the app to make deliveries. Deliveroo acknowledged the strike in an email to its restaurant partners.

The drivers, who had organized on social media and online messaging apps, ended their strike early Monday after the company said it would restore the previous pay rate and working hours. After this article was posted online, Deliveroo said in a statement that it was pausing all changes and would work with drivers to ensure that they remain competitively compensated. “Our initial intention with the announcement was to propose a more well-rounded structure for rider earnings in addition to other incentives. It is clear that some of our original intentions have not been clear and we are listening to riders,” the company said.

The Dubai media office and U.A.E. human resources ministry didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Work stoppages are extremely rare in the United Arab Emirates, an oil-rich collection of emirates including Dubai where foreign workers outnumber locals 10-to-one. The authoritarian government, run by a handful of powerful families, bans trade unions, strikes and public protests.

The U.A.E. burnished its image during the pandemic as a safe and comfortable haven for white-collar workers, drawing thousands of millionaires and tech entrepreneurs. But it has faced criticism for years, including around the Expo 2020 world fair that concluded in March, over the treatment of millions of low-wage workers—mainly from Asian countries such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Philippines—who enjoy fewer protections. Construction workers have previously gone on strike for higher wages.

Mustafa Qadri, chief executive of human-rights organization Equidem, said that despite a recent overhaul of U.A.E. labor laws, weak enforcement means that workers are more likely to be arrested for going on strike than to receive support from the authorities.

“If this is how thousands of workers in one of the biggest global companies get treated in Dubai, it raises questions about the wider risks of forced labor in the U.A.E. labor market,” said Mr. Qadri.

Deliveroo drivers say they are saddled with high costs associated with purchasing and repairing their motorcycles, obtaining and renewing work permits from local authorities, and paying their own rent and traffic fines. They also complain of poor healthcare despite the risks incurred driving their small vehicles over Dubai’s high-speed highways. Videos shared online as part of the campaign showed drivers gravely injured in traffic accidents.

The strike comes amid rising inflation, with global energy and food prices forecast to rise sharply this year as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine alters how commodities are traded, produced and consumed around the world.

The spark for the work stoppage was Deliveroo’s decision last week to reduce the amount it pays Dubai drivers for each delivery to the equivalent of $2.38 from $2.79 and extend shift lengths to up to 12 hours a day.

That followed a decision by the U.A.E. government to raise the price of gas in April for the third-consecutive month, further squeezing drivers who pay for their own gas and sometimes drive up to 300 miles a day, according to drivers.

“When they dropped our fees, they said work 12 hours (and) you will earn the same,” said a striking Pakistani driver. “We said, ‘We are human, not machines, we can’t do work 12 hours on the road.’”

Drivers said they had received threatening messages from the agencies that contract them to Deliveroo telling them to end the strike. A Deliveroo email seen by The Wall Street Journal warned riders that prohibiting others from working is a serious offense that could lead to criminal prosecution, jail or deportation.

After the company agreed to restore their previous pay rate and working hours, drivers celebrated online where customers and restaurants had expressed support for their strike and outrage at their treatment.

“These chaps should be treated well as should all employees,” tweeted Keren Bobker, a financial adviser in Dubai. “Many of us do care & want them to have a proper wage & legal hours.”

Write to Stephen Kalin at [email protected]