Uber Eats SA drivers strike postponed

A strike that halted a lot of services in and around Gauteng, Uber Eats SA drivers strike has been postponed.

Duane Bernard who speaks on behalf of some of the drivers announced late on Saturday evening that they have decided to suspend it.

“I would like to thank all drivers who sacrificed and participated in the strike. Thank you to all media houses for helping us get our voices heard. Our voices have been heard and we now sit and wait for Uber Eats to respond. You drivers are all heroes and I salute you all.

“The strike action is postponed and we will await Uber Eats response by Wednesday.”

The strike action is postponed and we will await Uber Eats response by Wednesday. Thanks to all who made it a success. @ewnupdates @eNCA @UberEats @Uber_Support @TheCitizen_News @POWER987News

— Duane Bernard (@duanee_bee) December 19, 2020

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The strike which started last Friday was against actions by Uber Eats South Africa of lowering the fee paid to drivers per delivery. Their demands include a delivery fee of R20 for the first 2km, and then R6 per kilometre after that. The Uber connect service delivery to be a minimum of R30 and to have a boost pay during peak times around lunch between 11am to 1pm.

Bernard says the private transport company has been lowering the fees of drivers over the years but the service fees keep increasing. With customers complaining they couldn’t order on the app because no drivers were available, Uber said they were working on ‘fixing’ the problem.

Uber Eats SA spokesperson Samantha Fuller released a statement on Sunday, she said: “We are aware of a group of delivery-drivers who went offline in Johannesburg and Pretoria. We respect drivers who deliver food on the app as valuable partners with a voice and a choice and we want delivery-drivers to feel they can talk to us about anything at any time.

“We are currently engaging with delivery-drivers about their concerns and to answer any additional questions they may have. We also have a number of established channels of communication and support for delivery-drivers to raise individual concerns, such as daily office hours, 24/7 in-app and phone support.

“Uber Eats succeeds when our partners succeed which is why we are always exploring new ways for partners to grow and succeed in their small businesses.”

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