On Sunday, July 31, be prepared for late or no food delivery as popular food delivery app DoorDash drivers are on strike. Although these gig workers have no union, they have been posting on TikTok and Reddit forums asking drivers not to dash on Sunday and if necessary to turn on Uber Eats app instead.
The drivers called Dashers are protesting as the app has decreased the base pay and also doesn’t show tip amounts before they accept the delivery.
Although the strike is said to be across the nation it began on Reddit. A Dasher asked other colleagues to “boycott” the app all day on July 31. The person who posted also asked them to use Uber Eats app for a day. One of the demands listed is a base pay of $4.50 on each order, before a tip.
DoorDash’s website says that workers’ base pay is calculated using a combination of factors such as
- Estimated time
- Distance
- Desirability of an order
Dashers can earn anywhere from $2 to $10 as base pay. Earlier the minimum amount was $3 but according to a Dasher on TikTok the app has lowered it to $2, $2.25, $2.50, and $2.75. Denise Small’s video on TikTok was viewed over 530,000 times but will Dashers stay off the roads on Sunday? This will remain a speculation till tomorrow.
Door Dash workers also want to know the amount that they have been tipped. Although they are shown a guaranteed minimum, the final tip is revealed only after a driver accepts the order. Earlier a third-party app Para, which was downloaded by Dashers, would inform them about the tip amount but the app was barred from accessing the DoorDash app.
Logging off the DoorDash app for a day is a small sign of protest from these drivers who say that their earnings have fallen. If a larger number of Dashers don’t deliver today, the strike will be successful and would definitely affect the company. It remains to be seen how many DoorDash drivers actually stay away from the app and from work as they will not get paid for a day off unlike regular workers, who have guaranteed holidays and many other benefits.
Image Doordash
