A DEMONSTRATION earlier this week by several hundred delivery riders of the popular Foodpanda delivery app drew the attention of the public and organized labor to the plight of these workers, who, along with their counterparts in other services such as Grab, have become indispensable to the economy. The delivery and transport app business has exploded during the pandemic with the growth in online commerce spurred by community quarantines and restrictions on transportation and movement. This has also been a lifesaver to thousands of workers displaced from other jobs, as many have been able to find work with the delivery services. There is strong precedent for imposing the already existing labor regulations on delivery app services and compelling them to treat their vital workers like formal employees, with the basic protections that classification entails. We are confident that the DoLE and other responsible agencies will respond favorably to the riders’ call for the same protections that are afforded to any other worker.

Source: Manila Times November 20, 2020 16:30 UTC