Behind the Dot on the Map: The Hidden Labour within the Gig Economy
Magidson. C (2022)
Most of us today have gone onto an app on our phone and had something delivered to us, such as a takeaway or a food shop. This means we are consumers within the gig economy. This type of courier job is portrayed as having freedom from being self-employed, which sounds ideal for some, but this is far from reality.
(Authors own image, 2025)
The algorithmic management system, that was adopted by the capitalist class (Cant. C, 2018), causes stress and burnout as it prioritises speed and efficiency with deliveries, and imposes a performance-based payment system. The employees lack access to health coverage and paid leave, and the job itself is physically taxing (Useche. S. A et al. 2025). What this job environment highlights is the intersection between the gig economy and emotional labour, due to the unstable work environment that is created. This can be seen by the financial insecurity within delivery couriers, and their payment system.
This intersection became especially clear during a strike that occurred in summer 2016 (Cant. C, 2020). In late July, the UK border agency (UKBA) was observing the Byron Burgers chain. Soon after the observations started, the workers were told by their managers to attend a morning meeting to recap how to properly cook the burgers prior to the commencement of the lunch shift. Yet it was not a meeting they were met with. In fact, an immigration raid occurred, with 20 Byron Burgers workers being detained and deported, and a further three Deliveroo workers being detained just a few weeks earlier. Word soon spread of what had happened and many felt betrayed and misused, and that if their labour was good enough to generate profit, why were they being “sold down the river” so easily?
Splash News (2016)
The workers were now all aware of the raid that had occurred and what had happened to their colleagues, their friends. They felt betrayed, misused and outraged. They felt that if they were giving their labour for them to profit, then why are they being sold out. From here on, word spread quickly, and it was soon decided that action would be taken, collectively.
Murray. B (2016)
Only two weeks later, Deliveroo made an announcement that there was going to be a change in the payment system, with it changing from their hourly rate of £7, with an extra £1 per completed delivery, and a petrol bonus for moped drivers, to a £3.75 fee per delivery wage, with no hourly rate. In other words, if there were no orders, there was no paycheque.
Now feeling betrayed, hundreds of workers began to strike outside of their London central office, and refused to deliver orders. The Independent Workers of Great Britain (IWGB) raised £20,000 for the strikers in order for them to have a basic wage during the strike. On day three of the strike, the managing director of Deliveroo UK, Dan Warne, spoke to the strikers, claiming they’ll listen to each concern, and that it was just a change in payment method, and not lower wages. However, this is not the case as the new payment system was clearly implemented to ensure Deliveroo doesn’t lose money during their quieter periods.
Novara Media (2016)
Deliveroo is then faced with the people who keep Deliveroo running, who are demonstrating that they are real people, with real problems, and together, they can create real power.
Couriersbranch (2016)
By the end of the fourth day, there was demands for a London living wage of £8.25 an hour, plus their costs and a bonus per delivery. This did not happen as they only managed to keep their £7 an hour wage, plus the £1 per drop payment structure. For any new Deliveroo workers it was even worse, they were put onto the new payment plan of pay per drop, justifying it with them being ‘independent contractors’. Then on, Deliveroo stated that they would not take part in any collective bargaining and/or allow trade union representation (Cant. C, 2020).
Prentice. R (2017)
What this strike symbolises is the restrictions within the gig economy on the workers power, even during these acts of resistance. The outcome for these workers reveals how the supposed “freedom” is actually a façade for the workplace inequalities.
Bibliography:
Cant. C (2020). Riding For Deliveroo- Resistance in the New Economy. Polity Press. John Wiley & Sons.
Cant. C (2018). The wave of worker resistance in European food platforms 2016-17. Notes from Below. Available at: https://notesfrombelow.org/article/european-food-platform-strike-wave
Channel 4 News (2016). Deliveroo drivers on wildcat strike. Youtube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mmkr1WcTgLg.
Murray. B (2016). We ordered some pizzas and asked Deliveroo drivers in London why they’ve been on strike. Our Economy. Available at: https://www.ecnmy.org/engage/deliveroo-drivers-london-strike-pay/.
Novara Media (2016). ‘We make their profits’- Deliveroo Workers on Strike. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GtFPGtsAr4.
Roy. G, Shrivastava. A. K (2020). Future of Gig Economy: Opportunities and Challenges. IMI Konnect. Vol 9. Pp. 14-27.
Splash News (2016). Noisy Horns- Deliveroo Riders On Strike In London Over Low Pay. Youtube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dqRVCYVgvg.
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