Courier's Crusade for basic working rights!

First negotiations with major CitySprint rival Excel proved productive- looking forward to our next meeting and their first proposal!

Signed and shared.

thank you!

:-)

As CitySprint continue to ignore their couriers' requests for higher rates, we return once more to their doorstep in protest of the unfair treatment of their workers...

JOIN US - 16th December 2015, 8am for an hour outside the CitySprint offices on Scrutton St.

Spread the word, bring a friend. There will be coffee and breakfast for those who come down and support the cause.

Good luck. Peace

No pay rise in 15-20yrs. It's a bloody outrage

Sorry for being quiet lately, been very busy with union work.
Here is the update on our first year anniversary.

All power to your elbow. Let us know how fakengers can help, if at all.

I just got this through at work from ecourier:

8th March 2016

MEMO: Our pushbike riders

Dear Trade,

I am writing to you to advise you of a dialogue we have engaged in with the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain, (IWGB), and to alert you to threats this unrecognised union has made to wage a campaign, which may in part be targeted at eCourier customers.

The IWGB wrote an open letter to eCourier on the 13th January 2016 criticizing the courier industry for its treatment of pushbike couriers. Its stated demand is to force eCourier to adopt the London living wage plus expenses and it is threatening a series of “campaign tactics” including loud and disruptive protests.

We have directly engaged with IWGB to discuss its concerns. It is not a recognised union and refuses to tell us how many – if any - of our pushbike riders it represents.

We engage with our pushbike couriers regularly and have positive and constructive relationships with them. Subsequent to the initial meeting with the IWGB we have talked with all our pushbike couriers to discuss the IWGB demands and their threats. We believe our pushbike couriers are as well paid and as well treated as any in London and treated significantly better than many working at other courier companies.

When we met with the IWGB executive we demonstrated that we are already paying our couriers, on or around the London Living Wage on average. Subsequently we have implemented a series of measures and changes resulting in a further improvement in pushbike courier earnings of approximately 8% combined with an opportunity to reduce their costs . The IWGB has informed us that this is still unsatisfactory, has put forward a series of additional demands. It says it still intends to embark on a campaign of “flash demonstrations” and social media activity to discredit us.

The IWGB’s demands are unreasonable, open ended and inconsistent with the self-employed business model upon which virtually the whole UK courier business is based and under which our own couriers tell us they wish to remain working. Our pushbike fleet have communicated to us they are happy with the pay regime and the self-employed status we have in place. We have entered into discussions with the Living Wage Foundation to validate our calculations and accredit us as a living wage employer.

The IWGB has no mandate to dictate to us. We believe their true objective is to seek to extend their membership into our business sector.

Accordingly, there may be some sort of demonstration at our premises or possibly at one of our client’s premises and we are writing to you to make you aware of this.

If you do have any concerns about this issue and would like to discuss the matter further please do not hesitate to contact me or any of the senior management (contact details listed below). We are happy to provide you with further information about our pushbike couriers’ earnings. We believe that the pay structures we have in place are fair and reasonable and can demonstrate that the average earnings of our pushbike couriers are on average above the London Living Wage.

We wish to thank you for your business, your support and loyalty towards eCourier.

Sincerely

Ian Oliver, CEO

Contacts for further information:

Ian.Oliver@ecourier.co.uk 07831324579 C.E.O
Malcolm.Fullick@ecourier.co.uk 07843 350 913 Group Operations Director
Guy.Howell@ecourier.co.uk 07843 350 970 Chief Financial Officer
Findlay.Fyfe@ecourier.co.uk 07971 496 666 General Manager Operations
Ray.Mulligan@ecourier.co.uk 07739 776 629 General Manager Specialist Logistics
Martin.Hayes@ecourier.co.uk 07989671351 Control Room Manager

I don't know how accurate or not their wage claims are but I find the anti-union sentiment to be disingenuous bullshit.

It is with real excitement that I bring this news to you, this news of huge potential change to the courier industry I work in. Four bicycle couriers from London have bravely decided to take four courier companies to tribunal to question their self-employed status. For decades couriers have been bogusly employed in this manner, stripping us of basic entitlements such as the National Minimum Wage. The case will hopefully set a benchmark to give couriers like myself more rights including paid holiday and a far better livelihood, ending years of courier exploitation. Principally this could take effect across the whole UK, as has happened in other countries, and could change thousands and thousands of lives for the better.
What can you do to help? Pledge a few pounds to support legal costs and please please share this link! This is the tribunal of the year, this is BIG and could help transform a dead end job to real careers for couriers like never before.
https://www.crowdjustice.co.uk/case/iwgbcouriers/

photo by SELIM KORYCKI

/// ECOURIER IS IN CRISIS! ///

As this week draws to a close, the IWGB has learnt that not only has Ecourier lost Ch4 and Arcadia to CitySprint in the last few weeks, but rumour has it that Bloomberg also ditched them yesterday, and prestigious law firm, and Living Wage Employer Mishcon de Reya, have suspended Ecourier pushbike deliveries until the LW situation has been satisfactorily resolved. The former three were apparently fed up with the service - and did not leave because of our campaign. Mishcon however, take the Living Wage extremely seriously and are acting accordingly. Of course, it's with a heavy heart that we hear this news because it makes it even harder for the Ecourier fleet to earn a decent living. That's why we decided to make this huge banner; to send a message to Royal Mail, who bought Ecourier in November last year. You are now responsible for Ecourier! Ecouriers now work for you, the same-day market is booming, and you guys are set to make a killing out of Ecourier. It's time to sort out the business and get it in order. Exploitation doesn't pay!
#unhappinessdelivered
#reallivingwagenow
#royalfail

Now in the Standard:

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/transport/bike-couriers-launch-test-cases-in-battle-to-boost-meagre-pay-a3217201.html

(With a highly appropriate illustration.)

Shared all the things on twitter and stuff, I'll try get by if I can to support the demo.

BREAKING NEWS: new pay offer submitted by E-Courier to avoid impending protest has been ACCEPTED by vote in our branch meeting tonight! By the Unions calculations this package will bring e-couriers into Living Wage territory, as well as addressing the costs currently incurred by riders to keep pedalling each day. The package includes an additional 20p per docket on top of 20p increase from last month, plus an increase in weekly bonus cap, free uniforms, and 10p per mile compensation for costs. This amounts to a nearly 30% pay rise and is a major VICTORY for Couriers who have took a stand against exploitation! We are celebrating E-Courier's choice to better the lives of their fleet (although it took more than a little nudging to provoke it!). We will be keeping close tabs on the implementation of these changes to make sure every penny promised will be payed to the couriers- please note however that Wednesday's protest is CANCELLED- and for E-Couriers: CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR PAYRISE!!!

lol (the illustration), that is exactly what i thought when i opened the page

Amazing victory last night, but we do not stop there!

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/apr/05/self-employed-freedom-underpaid-contractors#comments

6 days to go! We ask you all to take a second to share and let your friends and family know about this important cause. Thanks again to all you who have already pledged!
https://www.crowdjustice.co.uk/case/iwgbcouriers/

photo by SELIM KORYCKI

When you spend up to 50 hours a week cycling round London delivering parcels and are told what to do, when to do it and wear a company ID why don't you get holiday pay, the national minimum wage and other employment rights? It's because you're self-employed and not an employee. Four bicycle couriers are taking their companies to employment tribunal saying they should be counted as employees. Our Legal Eagle, Clive Coleman reports.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03rtms4