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Article

2 May 2022

Author:
Stephen Kalin, Wall Street Journal

Dubai Deliveroo Drivers Protest Pay Cut in Rare Strike

Thousands of food-delivery drivers walked off the job in Dubai over the weekend to protest low pay and poor working conditions, a rare act of defiance in the Middle East business hub where labor actions are criminalized.

... Videos shared on social media Sunday showed dozens of the delivery men dressed in the company’s teal-green uniforms standing beside their parked motorcycles outside one of Deliveroo’s ghost kitchens, a hub for picking up meal orders. Other drivers said they didn’t show up to work and refused to log into the app to make deliveries. Deliveroo acknowledged the strike in an email to its restaurant partners.

Drivers said they had received threatening messages from the agencies that contract them to Deliveroo telling them to end the strike. A Deliveroo email seen by The Wall Street Journal warned riders that prohibiting others from working is a serious offense that could lead to criminal prosecution, jail or deportation.

The drivers, who had organized on social media and online messaging apps, ended their strike early Monday after the company said it would restore the previous pay rate and working hours.

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