Uber Eats drivers awaiting response after stay-away protest

After their stay-away protest last Friday, Uber Eats drivers say they are now waiting for a response from Uber Eats on their demand for an increase of delivery fees.

The drivers explained that the stay away on Friday was the only manner they could have their grievances heard since Uber Eats does not have an office in South Africa where they could lodge their complaints.

“Many people were expecting a physical protest but this was the only way to get our point across and because we do not have an office we can lodge our complaints to,” said the driver.

This after customers complained that there were no drivers available to make deliveries on Friday around Johannesburg and Pretoria.

Screenshot of the Uber Eats app.

Uber spokesperson said that they were aware that some drivers were offline on Friday in parts of Gauteng.

“We are aware of a group of couriers who went offline on Friday, January 22 in Johannesburg and Pretoria,” said Uber.

They said that they had recently introduced a more affordable delivery charge and temporary incentives for the drivers to ensure their earnings were strong and reliable, while they work on growing the business.

ALSO READ: ‘Come to the party or Uber Eats SA drivers strike continues’

However, the drivers said that they were yet to see the incentives and were not very hopeful because they had tried several times to engage the Uber Eats management, without success.

The drivers said that since students around Johannesburg hadn’t returned to campuses, they spent most of their time waiting for orders and not making actual deliveries.

“We did not stage the blackout as a punishment to the company but it is very discouraging for us to spend our time waiting around for orders,” said a driver.

The drivers explained that their demands include an official increase in delivery fees, a pick-up fee of R20 and then R6 per kilometre after the first two kilometres and an official Uber Eats office to be established where they can physically report their grievances.

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.