Instacart Shoppers to Proceed With Emergency Walk Off
Instacart workers strike 2020: What you need to know.
Instacart has over 200,000 shoppers on its platform and serves 5,500 cities in the U.S. and Canada.
Thousands of shoppers for Instacart, a tech company that offers same-day grocery delivery through its app, are planning to strike Monday. The workers are claiming that the company has refused to provide them with adequate protection amid the current coronavirus health crisis and are seeking better pay.
Gig Workers Collective, an organization that represents the interests of gig economy workers at companies like Instacart, Uber and Lyft, organized the strike following complaints that Instacart has ignored shoppers’ (the name Instacart gives workers who pick up groceries for customers) pleas to enact proper safety precautions to keep them safe during the pandemic.
“Instacart has refused to act proactively in the interests of its Shoppers, customers, and public health, so we are forced to take matters into our own hands,” Gig Workers Collective wrote in a statement posted Friday.
“We will not continue to work under these conditions. We will not risk our safety, our health, or our lives for a company that fails to adequately protect us, fails to adequately pay us, and fails to provide us with accessible benefits should we become sick,” the statement continued.
Shoppers who strike say they will not return to work until their demands, which include access to hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes or sprays and soap provided at no cost; hazard pay of an extra $5 per order and a default tip amount of 10%; an extension and expansion of pay for workers impacted by COVID-19, and an extension of the deadline to qualify for these benefits, which is currently April 8, are met.
“With Instacart neglecting the basic wellbeing of its 150,000+ drivers, we believe there is no choice but to not only walk off, but to raise awareness to the company’s practices. They are putting us directly in harm’s way while profiting greatly,” the statement said.
Consider supporting AMIBC™. Contribute by clicking on the advertisers and sponsors featured on AMIBC™ and please utilize them. Readers from around the world, like you, make our work possible. We need your support to deliver quality, vetted, investigative journalism – and to keep it open for everyone. At a time when factual, honest reporting is critical, your support is essential in protecting our editorial independence.
The narratives and issues impacting all Americans is tantamount to the AMIBC™ platform. Every contribution, however big or small, is valuable for our future. Make sure to join the AMIBC Founders Club to maximize the total advantage of being a subscriber.
