Rider, Just Eat sign heat emergency agreement

"In light of the heat emergency, we have signed a truly important regional agreement with Just Eat: the multinational 'food delivery' company, the only one in the sector to have established an employment relationship with riders, will suspend the receipt of orders in the time slots subject to the heat peaks of the hottest days, introduce more paid breaks to ensure hydration and rest for workers, and provide exemption from the most at-risk shifts for fragile staff and those over 60.

This was announced in a note by Filt Cgil Roma Lazio, Fit Cisl Lazio and UilTrasporti Lazio, in which they added that 'what we have obtained is not to be taken for granted, especially if we consider that a large part of the revenue of companies like Just Eat is concentrated precisely in the time slot that coincides with lunch'.

Other novelties include the activation of a constant monitoring table to react promptly to any worsening of the weather situation. The agreement provides, in particular, that workers will receive full pay even during periods of suspension, regardless of the activation of social shock absorbers.

'With today's agreement, the result of negotiation and commitment, we can say,' the trade unions add, 'that we have laid the foundations for a fundamental network of guarantees for a category of workers particularly exposed to the dangers of the road and weather. It is a fundamental step to protect cycle drivers'.

"We are proud to have signed, together with the trade unions and the RSA, an important agreement aimed at protecting the health and safety of our riders during the summer period, in line with the regional ordinance and the national Framework Protocol," said Davide Bertarini, Head of Delivery Just Eat Italia. "This agreement represents a significant step forward on the path of shared responsibility and concrete attention to working conditions, especially at a time when the intensification of extreme weather events requires everyone to act promptly and seriously. The measures adopted by Just Eat in recent weeks - from the possibility of reducing the shifts for bicycles and e-bikes, to the exemption for the most fragile groups - have been positively welcomed by the trade unions and, following the discussion with the social partners, the company has agreed to introduce a new shared measure: the suspension of work in the most critical time slot, from 3pm to 4pm, in the event of high risk. It is important to emphasise,' says Bertarini, 'that even in the case of suspension or interruption of service, the riders will be guaranteed ordinary pay. These actions confirm Just Eat's constant commitment to guarantee continuity of service, always putting people's health and well-being at the centre. We express great satisfaction with the climate of constructive dialogue with the social partners, which has made it possible to build an effective, concrete and timely agreement. We will continue to monitor the evolution of the situation and actively collaborate to face future challenges together'.