"'Sometimes it feels like we're slaves': On the road with the Evri delivery drivers who say the job is 'awful'", 5 February 2023

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Craig...is one of several Evri couriers in Manchester who've spoken to the M.E.N about what life is really like working for the delivery firm.

He works at a depot in the city where morale is reportedly at rock-bottom, amid claims drivers are having to work harder for less money, and face having their rounds "slashed." Evri deny this, and say that all couriers earn in excess of the minimum wage after expenses, and this includes time for collection and re-delivery.

But tensions have become so heightened at one depot in south Manchester that drivers were involved in a stand-off with bosses this week. They say they 'grafted hard' over Christmas to help clear a huge backlog of parcels, but claim the 'tipping point' came when changes to their routes were implemented. Evri say they are in discussion with a 'small number' of couriers affected.

Craig...says his experience of the job has got 'progressively worse.' Evri say that drivers are able to choose how many parcels they deliver and in what time frame, but Craig claims he has to work six days a week in order to keep his round...

Craig... claims changes to the packaging sizes mean he makes less money than he used to.

"For a standard parcel you might get 60p but now they've changed the sizing so you could have a massive Dunelm parcel which is huge but doesn't really weigh that much that's put down as a packet," he said...

Craig claims he and his colleagues only get paid for the parcels they deliver to customers, and explains this is why couriers have previously been filmed leaving parcels in bizarre places...

Evri say that when petrol costs spiked they introduced an additional fuel payment, which was 'tailored for round types.' But Craig says for him, this only amounted to an extra £8 a month.

Craig claims the first few hours of his shift are spent 'exposed to the elements' as he and fellow drivers are forced to load their cars without any shelter from the weather.

Evri say couriers have access to rain shelters, but Craig and other drivers who spoke to the M.E.N claim this isn't the case...

Another driver, who has worked for Evri for several years, says it's the 'worst job he's ever had,'...

Couriers at the south Manchester depot, who claim they normally deliver on average over 150 parcels a day, say in the last few days they've arrived to find just a few dozen parcels allocated to them, meaning they say they will earn less than £20 a round.

They claim they won't be able to survive on this and there were chaotic scenes outside the unit in Wythenshawe last week, as a group of angry couriers refused to pick up parcels as they demanded answers over what was happening...

A spokesperson for Evri said: "We are unable to respond to anonymous allegations about specific disputes or even verify that these individuals work for Evri without their details.

"However, we can confirm that as our couriers are self-employed, they are able to choose the number of parcels they deliver and the time frame they do it. If couriers are unable to do their round for any reason we have cover couriers in place and over the Christmas period we added another 5,000 to offer support.

"All our couriers earn in excess of the minimum wage after expenses such as fuel costs (the average is over £15 an hour) and this includes time for collection and redelivery. This is independently audited by the GMB Union.

"When fuel costs spiked we introduced an additional payment which was tailored for round types – it is worth noting that 2/3s of our rounds are less than 1sq mile and the average courier will do 15 or less miles per day. All parcels are sorted into cages inside the depots and then loaded into vehicles outside with access to rain shelters."

In response to the recent dispute in Wythenshawe, a spokesperson for the firm added: "We are in discussions with a small number of couriers at one of our local delivery units who are unhappy with some changes to delivery rounds we have implemented.