Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Maybe the Taoiseach will recommend students not work for Deliveroo in that case, because they are obviously being exploited. The fact they can only work a 20-hour week is what gives that company the right to exploit them. Maybe the Taoiseach will make that call. It would be helpful. There is an EU directive coming. That will be useful but it will take many years to come to fruition. It has to be negotiated at the Commission and so forth. Surely we can do something now that would make life better for those Deliveroo workers?

In a letter to the Taoiseach dated 18 May 2021, Deliveroo stated, "as discussed at our meeting, Deliveroo is committed to working with you and your officials to find a solution". It also stated:

I note your comments that the Irish definitions of employment and self-employment are currently highly complex, with different interpretations across multiple different departments. As you work through your plans to update and unify these definitions, Deliveroo is more than willing to provide information and evidence as necessary to provide a complete picture of how our riders work. I also appreciated your comments in the meeting that your intent is not to undermine the ability of businesses like Deliveroo to operate.

Is Ireland's contribution to the new EU directive being made on behalf of workers' rights or on behalf of Deliveroo?

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