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Deliveroo ban workers from employment tribunals

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Deliveroo ban workers from employment tribunals

Food delivery service, Deliveroo, has banned self-employed workers from attending employment tribunals.

The company has written a clause into its couriers’ contracts stating that they cannot launch legal action if they are unhappy with their current status.

The clause reads: “You further warrant that neither you nor anyone acting on your behalf will present any claim in the employment tribunal or any civil court in which it is contended that you are either an employee or a worker”.

It continues, that in the event of legal action, riders must “indemnify and keep indemnified Deliveroo against costs (including legal costs) and expenses that it incurs”.

It has been argued, however, that the clause is “unenforceable”, and is just an obstacle to put people off from following the example of workers taking action elsewhere.

Earlier this month, taxi-app firm Uber was taken to court by its own drivers, after a dispute over their employment statuses; and the Guardian uncovered that package courier Hermes was reportedly paying its staff less than the National Living Wage, a claim that the company deny.

Deliveroo, a takeaway delivery service which uses bikers to pick up food for customers, pays its staff around £7 an hour plus commission on each delivery – but only offers freelance contracts to its riders.

This means that they miss out on employment benefits such as holiday and sick pay.

In response, Deliveroo said: “We provide a platform for people to work with us on a freelance basis. This allows riders to work flexibly around another commitment, like studying or other work. We’ve worked with legal experts to design our contracts to reflect that and we’re proud to be creating opportunities for over 5,000 riders across the UK.”

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