Uber’s warning that Australians may pay up to 85% more to have a meal delivered if gig economy workers are treated as employees under proposed workplace legislation is an admission that delivery rider workers are being woefully underpaid, experts have said.
Uber supports the Fair Work Commission setting minimum standards but made the claim about price rises in its submission to a Senate inquiry into the legislation, to demonstrate what it said were “significant concerns” about comparing pay and conditions of traditional employees when setting standards for gig workers.
Fiona Macdonald, an expert in industrial relations at the Australia Institute, said the figures put forward by Uber showed just how much workers were being underpaid.
“What that is reflecting is the current below-acceptable levels of pay being received by the current workers,” she said.
“If platform companies are making a profit that relies on paying workers less, then arguably the difference could come out of the companies’ pockets, not the consumer’s.”
The Transport Workers’ Union said the figures put forward by the company, which also forecast Australians could pay 60% more to catch an Uber, missed the point of the legislation because it proposed a new standard known as “employee-like” should be applied to gig economy workers, not that they should be treated exactly as employees.
The union’s national assistant secretary, Nick McIntosh, said it meant any gig worker should be able to have minimum standards.
“Then the Fair Work Commission can set what they consider to be appropriate minimum standards after consulting with everybody involved,” he said.
“I think it’s a pretty robust, fair process that is not going to lead to an outcome anything like what Uber is suggesting.”
In its submission, the company argued that the government’s bill, when considering standards that should apply to gig workers, made numerous references to employees’ pay and conditions that could influence the commission to “mirror” gig worker minimum standards on employee pay and conditions.
“Our submission includes modelling on the potential impact of the bill as it’s currently written,” a spokesperson for Uber said. “The bill leaves open questions around what standards the FWC may or may not apply to gig workers – for example, penalty rates.
“Without further clarity, there could be unintended consequences for consumers, workers and businesses. These consequences can be avoided with some practical amendments that more clearly address the unique nature of platform work.”
Menulog did not respond directly when asked if it agreed about the risk of price rises but agreed with Uber on the need to further distinguish “employee-like” from employee.
Macdonald, who believes the reforms should treat gig workers as employees, agreed with the union that the legislation was clear in relation to gig workers.
According to the union, 66% of full-time gig economy workers are earning below the minimum wage.
Josh Bornstein, an industrial relations lawyer at Maurice Blackburn, said the claim fell into a pattern of other large businesses threatening that consumers would pay more, after the workplace relations minister, Tony Burke, admitted the legislation might cause prices to rise slightly.
“There are exaggerated and embellished claims of doom if loopholes that prevent people from being paid properly are closed off,” Bornstein said.
McIntosh said Uber’s support of the Fair Work Commission’s standards was still “overall positive”.
“Food delivery is an industry where we’ve lost at least 13 lives of workers that we know,” he said. “We know that 66% of full-time workers earn below the minimum wage. We know that there are many people injured on a daily basis with no recourse to workers’ compensation and we know that workers can get deactivated for any reason without any recourse.
“So clearly, this is an industry that needs minimum standards. What those standards are or should be is ultimately going to be a matter for the Fair Work Commission.”
