Sydney-based startup MilkRun made a big splash with its promise to deliver groceries within ten minutes, raising more than A$85 million from some of the biggest names in Australian venture capital, including Atlassian billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes. MilkRun’s co-founder and chief executive Dany Milham had already found success with fast-delivering mattress company Koala. Less than a… Read more »
When food delivery platform Deliveroo announced it was shutting down Australian operations last week, it cited a tough business environment, but that tough part may actually be a looming court case challenging the company’s contract work model, according to UNSW Business School lecturer Dr Greig Taylor. His view aligns with the Transport Workers’ Union, with… Read more »
Early stage investment company Antler Australia recently backed 13 startups as part of its ongoing program to build great local tech companies. Startup Daily has shared the details of each venture in the “Antler Investor Memos” series and today it’s the final profile of those ventures. This series is designed to give you a quick, sharp… Read more »
Online grocery shopping has boomed since the pandemic began in 2020, with Woolworths and Coles steadily expanding their home-delivery offerings. Rapid delivery is the latest frontier. Woolworths and Coles Express have been offering on-demand deliveries through UberEats and Doordash since last year. Woolworths recently launched the Metro60 app which promises home delivery within an hour… Read more »
The gig economy is in trouble. Rideshare drivers are cancelling in droves. Wait times for food delivery are ballooning out and driver shortages are leading to food waste. So, what’s going on? To find out more, I interviewed 30 Melbourne gig workers who worked as rideshare drivers, food deliverers or for task-based platforms such as… Read more »
Uber Australia has struck a historic agreement with the Transport Workers’ Union – a statement of principles that re-regulate work in the Australian rideshare and food delivery industry. This is a major shift to industrial relations in the gig economy. Uber and its rival platforms have largely treated their workforce as independent contractors, not employees… Read more »
A landmark decision by the NSW government disputes resolution body, the Personal Injury Commission, with see the family of a food delivery rider killed in a traffic accident in 2020 receive $830,000 in compensation after food company and its insurer accepted liability for his death. Xiaojun Chen, 43, died in September 2020 after his bike… Read more »
Food delivery tech company DoorDash has signed a pioneering agreement with the Transport Workers’ Union (TWU) that sets out safety and fairness standards for gig workers. Amid ongoing legal battles by global tech companies over the employment status of gig economy workers, the first-of-its-kind agreement between an Australian union and a delivery platform sets out… Read more »
This weekend, you might hit “place order” for a meal delivery. Or jump in a ride share to meet friends. In both cases, you’ll be engaging a gig worker. “Gig worker” is a term that generally refers to people who get work through smartphone apps – think Uber, Ola, AirTasker, Snappr, and others. Approximately 250,000… Read more »
Amazon drivers and transport unionists celebrated a win against the gig economy last week after the NSW Industrial Relations Commission agreed to give Amazon Flex drivers a minimum rate of $37.80 per hour. The new rate of pay will be incrementally phased-in starting from 1 March, beginning at $27.83 and reaching the full $37.80 per… Read more »
Casual jobs marketplace Airtasker this week held its first AGM since listing six months ago and despite the disruption of 2021’s pandemic lockdowns, pent-up demand to get things done has seen use of the platform soar. Airtasker’s (ASX:ART) gross marketplace volume (GMV) – a measure of activity on the platform – crossed $200 million as… Read more »
Australian car insurance startup Ride Protect, which is designed specifically for rideshare drivers, launched this week. Ride Protect founder and CEO Jeremy Bennett developed the insurtech solution after realising that up to a third of gig economy drivers had not told their insurer they are part of a rideshare/food delivery service or are unaware they… Read more »
The NSW Government is introducing new laws to improve safety in the gig economy after five food delivery riders died on the job last year. The new laws will become part of Work Health and Safety legislation and come amid concerns over a lax approach to road safety by the riders themselves. The changes are… Read more »
The ruling by Australia’s Fair Work Commission that online food delivery platform Deliveroo unfairly dismissed driver Diego Franco marks a major shift in the Australian “gig” economy. What’s most significant is the commission has ruled Franco was, in fact, an employee of Deliveroo, not an independent contractor – the legal strategy platform companies use to… Read more »
Anthony Albanese will risk a backlash from employers when he releases an industrial relations policy promising a Labor government would substantially increase the legal rights and protections for Australians in insecure work. Wednesday’s policy unveiling will ensure industrial relations is a major political battleground in coming months, with the opposition already declaring it will vote… Read more »
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