![]() Gustavo is just one of the tens of thousands of food delivery workers in New York City alone. Tanzina: Gustavo Ache is a delivery worker and a member of the Worker's Justice Project. Also, we're asking for security, because our bikes continue to be stolen. Translator: These are our demands, for the government to regulate the apps, for us to be given access to bathrooms, and access to places where we can stay warm during the winter, public enclosed spaces to be able to warm ourselves up or pass some time so we can continue our shift. Tanzina: Gustavo says he's fighting for changes to these issues as a member of the Worker's Justice Project, which aims to secure better working conditions for low-wage immigrant New Yorkers. Many workers from restaurants are forced to seek other jobs to make a living, and one of them is to begin making deliveries to see if they can make a little money. They have a lot of people working too, which signifies there's a lot of unemployment. Translator: There is demand, but there are a lot of people, and the apps are only looking for their own well-being, only to see if they make money. Meanwhile, workers like Gustavo say they continue to struggle. In a statement to The Takeaway, DoorDash said on average its workers make $22 an hour plus tips, and that the company is working with community groups to further support its workers. By the end of last Wednesday, its stock price was $190. Tanzina: Just last week, DoorDash announced it would go public. He gave me a bad review as if I had done something wrong, but what happened was, I was in an accident. Previously, I was in an accident, and what the person from the app asked me first was if the food was okay, and then he asked me how I was. Translator: These apps have brought a lot of changes to the migrant workers who dedicate our lives to this. For that reason, he says, most drivers don't report accidents and just keep on going. He said he reported the accident to the company he was working for and they were not sympathetic. Tanzina: Gustavo said he got into an accident while delivering food once. Also, there are safety risks you take when you're on the street, you have to be very careful. People deny you the use of bathrooms, people discriminate against you, and you have to travel long distances to make only a few dollars. When you're out, there is discrimination and challenges that you face on the street. Translator: The most frustrating part is that sometimes there aren't many deliveries. Tanzina: He said he faces many challenges as a delivery worker. In that time I began working at eight in the morning, and by two in the afternoon I had only made $50. I went to the parking lot to pick up my bike, and then I began to see if there were orders. Translator: I left my house at like six in the morning, and I got to Manhattan at seven. He'd already been out for six hours and had only earned $50. Gustavo Ache works for DoorDash and Grubhub here in New York City. Now, some of them say they're organizing. When some of the delivery workers being berated for entering restaurants to get food, not being allowed to use the restrooms and worrying about getting what they're owed in tips. ![]() Many of the workers for those apps say they've been treated poorly and paid just as bad. ![]() ![]() Since the beginning of the pandemic, especially as it raged across New York City in the spring, many New Yorkers relied heavily on food delivery apps as a lifeline, apps like Grubhub, DoorDash and Seamless. Today, though, we take a look at some essential workers and an industry that's hanging on by a thread. The big question now becomes who gets it first, and we're going to be talking a lot about that over the coming weeks. Doses should be arriving today in many states, and it's been a long and hard road, but it's not nearly over. Some good news this weekend, as the FDA approved distribution of the COVID vaccine and trucks started shipping out doses. Tanzina Vega: I'm Tanzina Vega, and this is The Takeaway, and it's great to have you with us. ![]()
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