This summer one of our union members, Lucy*, was involved in a traffic accident whilst out delivering for UberEats. The other driver was at fault, but he and Lucy decided to take no further action.
Three months later, however, the other driver lied and took Lucy to court. Lucy is Brazilian and does not speak English so she had to defend herself through a translator. Additionally, by this point CCTV of the incident was no longer available. The result was that Lucy had to pay £600 in court fees, and got 5 points on her licence, requiring her to pay nearly £600 to her insurance company.
These are costs that Lucy cannot afford. She is a single parent with a 12-year-old daughter, and she already works 6 days a week, up to 12 hours a day. As a ‘self-employed’ delivery driver, she is not covered by UberEats for costs like these, despite the fact that they are an occupational risk that couriers face every day.
We are asking supporters of UberEats drivers, friends of the IWW and anyone who wants to support gig economy workers to donate to our fund so that we can help out a union member in need. The IWW is also fundraising internally to cover these costs, and we recently held a social in London that raised over £100 that will go towards Lucy. We need to show delivery drivers that unions like the IWW will support them through hardship, whether it comes directly from the boss, or is otherwise a reality of their working conditions.
You can donate directly via this GoFundMe page or by asking your IWW Branch to make a donation.
For the One Big Union
IWW Couriers Network & London IWW
*Lucy is a pseudonym to protect our member’s identity