Women working with Urban Company (UC), who led a weeks-long protest against the firm last year, now say they are facing ‘targeted’ action by either having their accounts ‘shadow-blocked’ or deactivated — both of which have led to work drying up for them over the last two-three months.
Last December, UC's subscription policy (Flexi scheme) asking service providers to pay a fee for job leads through their app had backfired, leading to over 300 women beauticians and salon service providers launching a sit-in protest at their Gurugram office.
The company offers a platform connecting service professionals (repair technicians, cleaning and other household service providers, etc.) to customers — much like an app-based cab service connects drivers to passengers. And like the ride-hailing apps, UC too refuses to recognise its service professionals as employees, which is among the key issues workers have with the company.
