Post by acnedriver on Mar 9, 2023 7:31:07 GMT
Drivers working for taxi app Bolt are self-employed contractors
Drivers working for taxi firms and apps Addison Lee and Bolt in Bristol are working around 12 hours a day, six days a week, just to earn enough to live on, a new survey has revealed.
The survey of drivers in the ‘gig economy’ working for taxi app Bolt and national firm Addison Lee was undertaken by solicitors Leigh Day, which is locked in a legal battle with the two firms over workers’ rights.
The survey of more than 150 taxi drivers in Bristol found more than half said they worked 12 hours a day, and almost three-quarters reported working six day weeks, just to earn enough money to get by in the cost-of-living crisis.
Leigh Day won a court victory over Addison Lee in 2017, granting their drivers workers’ rights, but is now defending those rights and last year launched a similar claim against Bolt - an Uber-style taxi app where the drivers are hired by the job, and not paid up employees.
Drivers working for Bolt say the company should be treating them as employees, not self-employed contractors, and they should at least receive paid holiday and earn the minimum wage.
That’s not happening at the moment, according to the Leigh Day survey, which it described as ‘alarming’, saying it provides ‘an insight into the current state of workers rights for Addison Lee and Bolt drivers’. The survey claims more than 80 per cent of drivers surveyed by Leigh Day - around 150 in Bristol among 800 nationwide - said the money they earn doesn’t cover their bills.
After the court victory in 2017, Addison Lee appealed, and were told in April 2021 that they would not be able to appeal a judgement by the Employment Tribunal that drivers are entitled to workers’ rights. The firm’s case is that the ruling should only apply to the three drivers who actually brought the case, not every other driver Addison Lee uses since.
“Gig economy workers in Bristol should not be struggling to feed their families and pay their bills whilst the companies they work for, such as Addison Lee and Bolt, refuse to provide them with basic workers’ rights,” Nigel Mackay, a partner in the Leigh Day employment team, said.
“The drivers we surveyed work exceedingly long hours yet still do not earn enough to cover the cost of living. This goes to show that changes need to be made to improve workers’ rights for our clients,” he added.
www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bristol-taxi-drivers-working-12-8224692
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Comment. The Gig economy is destroying many jobs. I have recently been told that some minimum fares on BOLT MCR drivers are only being paid only £1 amile at the end of the journey
I have had no evidence sent in here so it may be true or false.
With that in mind, today this morning I plotted two journeys using google maps.
Here are the two results.
Here it is, the prices for two identical journeys today 09 March. How do BOLT justify paying £5 for a journey that pays £11 in a black Cab.
In each case you are hiring a man and a licensed vehicle (which is often hired from another party)
How many people have thier snouts in the trough here ?
Drivers working for taxi firms and apps Addison Lee and Bolt in Bristol are working around 12 hours a day, six days a week, just to earn enough to live on, a new survey has revealed.
The survey of drivers in the ‘gig economy’ working for taxi app Bolt and national firm Addison Lee was undertaken by solicitors Leigh Day, which is locked in a legal battle with the two firms over workers’ rights.
The survey of more than 150 taxi drivers in Bristol found more than half said they worked 12 hours a day, and almost three-quarters reported working six day weeks, just to earn enough money to get by in the cost-of-living crisis.
Leigh Day won a court victory over Addison Lee in 2017, granting their drivers workers’ rights, but is now defending those rights and last year launched a similar claim against Bolt - an Uber-style taxi app where the drivers are hired by the job, and not paid up employees.
Drivers working for Bolt say the company should be treating them as employees, not self-employed contractors, and they should at least receive paid holiday and earn the minimum wage.
That’s not happening at the moment, according to the Leigh Day survey, which it described as ‘alarming’, saying it provides ‘an insight into the current state of workers rights for Addison Lee and Bolt drivers’. The survey claims more than 80 per cent of drivers surveyed by Leigh Day - around 150 in Bristol among 800 nationwide - said the money they earn doesn’t cover their bills.
After the court victory in 2017, Addison Lee appealed, and were told in April 2021 that they would not be able to appeal a judgement by the Employment Tribunal that drivers are entitled to workers’ rights. The firm’s case is that the ruling should only apply to the three drivers who actually brought the case, not every other driver Addison Lee uses since.
“Gig economy workers in Bristol should not be struggling to feed their families and pay their bills whilst the companies they work for, such as Addison Lee and Bolt, refuse to provide them with basic workers’ rights,” Nigel Mackay, a partner in the Leigh Day employment team, said.
“The drivers we surveyed work exceedingly long hours yet still do not earn enough to cover the cost of living. This goes to show that changes need to be made to improve workers’ rights for our clients,” he added.
www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bristol-taxi-drivers-working-12-8224692
--------------------------------------------------------------
Comment. The Gig economy is destroying many jobs. I have recently been told that some minimum fares on BOLT MCR drivers are only being paid only £1 amile at the end of the journey
I have had no evidence sent in here so it may be true or false.
With that in mind, today this morning I plotted two journeys using google maps.
Here are the two results.
Here it is, the prices for two identical journeys today 09 March. How do BOLT justify paying £5 for a journey that pays £11 in a black Cab.
In each case you are hiring a man and a licensed vehicle (which is often hired from another party)
How many people have thier snouts in the trough here ?
