Mary Fitzpatrick (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the Seanad this morning. Senator Seery Kearney and I wish to address the issue of the precarious nature of employment being experienced by front-line delivery workers who work in the gig economy. The Minister of State will be aware from going through Dublin city that the streets are empty except for front-line workers such as the emergency services, taxi drivers, bus drivers and bicycle delivery workers. The bicycle delivery workers have provided a vital and essential service to all of us during the pandemic by bringing us groceries and our favourite takeaways to the comfort of our homes or places of work. We thank all of our front-line workers. As I understand it, Deliveroo was set up by an American banker who moved to London, could not cook his own dinner and was frustrated with the poor quality of delivery service available in the UK. He smartly developed a software-driven delivery service that is more efficient, more convenient and smart. When one looks behind the software app, one has to look at the human experience of these workers in the gig economy. These workers are categorised as being self-employed but as part of a subcontracting culture, many young foreign students who come to Ireland to learn English and have a cultural experience are taking this part-time work to pay their way. They are providing us with a vital service but they are in a no man's land in which the company does not provide them with any employment rights or insurance cover if they are robbed, mugged or in any way injured carrying out their work. Senator Seery Kearney will set out our request to the Minister of State.