The ruling is the fourth determining that Deliveroo’s riders are self-employed rather than employed by the food delivery giant directly. This fourth ruling followed decisions by two High Court judgements and the Central Arbitration Committee. The Court of Appeal has said that Deliveroo’s riders cannot form a collective bargaining unit as they are not in an “employment relationship” with the company.
Deliveroo riders first lost their fight to gain union recognition in 2018, and have been pushing for recognition ever since. Whilst Deliveroo has said its riders earn only £10.00 per hour on average, a recent analysis by The Bureau of Investigative Journalism found that many riders were being paid significantly less. In some cases, Deliveroo riders have reportedly earned as little as £2.00 per hour. Had Deliveroo riders won their fight to become recognised as employees of Deliveroo, then they would be entitled to the UK minimum wage.
