Language:

Brazil

Scores (out of 10)

iFood

2

99

2

Uber

1

GetNinjas

0

Rappi

0

Uber Eats

0

Poll: Consumers in Brazil demand better working conditions for platform workers

New survey found 7 out of 10 São Paulo citizens would stop using delivery and transport apps that fail to offer decent pay and working conditions for workers.

A poll by Locomotiva released today has found that 93% of people in São Paulo believe that platform workers deserve better protections and pay.

Fairwork Brazil

The COVID-19 pandemic context intensified the growing dependence on digital platforms to carry out work activities. Over the past two years, delivery and transport sectors have been in the spotlight, with platform workers being considered essential. Platformization has also expanded to various work sectors, for instance, platforms that offer general services and domestic work, in addition to other cloudwork platforms.

In the last year, workers from different platforms have faced precarious and dangerous working conditions, with numerous reports of health problems and accidents. Workers we interviewed for this study also complained about low payments and unfair deactivations. They also claimed that they cannot talk to human representatives of the platforms and that it is difficult to appeal against deactivations. They were also unaware of policies to combat inequality within the platforms and would like to be heard more by platforms.

The first Fairwork Brazil report analyses how the main labour platforms in the country relate to fair work principles. Platforms can choose to reduce inequalities and unemployment. However, the annual Fairwork Brazil scoring provides evidence that platform workers, as in many countries around the world, face unfair working conditions, and suffer without protections.

Fairwork scored six of Brazil’s largest digital labour platforms against five fair work principles – fair pay, fair conditions, fair contracts, fair management and fair representation – giving each platform a score from 0 to 10. Overall, all of the six platforms failed to secure basic labour standards for their workers.

“With the advance of technology and the computerization of services, digital platforms have gained immense ground. Many of them achieve huge profits. On the other hand, the search for maximizing profits comes along with the overexploitation of labor. We have seen, for example, the situation of young delivery boys in Brazil who, throughout the pandemic, have worked without any rights. Fairwork helps us to uncover these realities and thus think about policies to protect the working class”.

Ivan Valente
Federal Deputy for the state of São Paulo

Ivan Valente
“The Microelectronics Technological Revolution has profoundly altered the ways of organizing and providing work since the end of the last century. With the internet and the enormous advances in computing, “platform capitalism” has emerged. This new productive paradigm is established, but the workers engaged in these activities do not have practically any social and/or labor protection. But this does not mean that regulation of this new employment contract should not be established with legal parameters based on the concept of fair work. Thus, the Fairwork project has a lot to contribute.”

Henrique Fontana
Federal Deputy for the state of Rio Grande do Sul

Henrique Fontana

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Evento de Lançamento: Relatório Fairwork Brasil 2021