Glovo’s Legal Challenges in Italy
By Emilio Parodi
Overview of Allegations
MILAN, Feb 9 (Reuters) – Milan prosecutors have placed the Italian arm of Spanish food delivery platform Glovo under judicial supervision and its chief executive under investigation for alleged exploitation of workers, judicial documents seen by Reuters showed on Monday.
Impact on Workers
The Carabinieri labour unit served an urgent decree imposing judicial control on Foodinho, the documents showed, in the latest step in a wider crackdown on labour exploitation in a variety of business sectors over the past three years.
Judicial Actions Taken
Foodinho, Glovo and the Spanish company’s German parent Delivery Hero did not respond immediately to requests for comment.
The 54-page judicial decree seen by Reuters said that Foodinho riders were paid below the poverty line, averaging 2.50 euros ($3) per delivery. In some cases pay was more than 75% below the poverty threshold, according to the document, which included testimony from 39 migrant workers.
The minimum subsistence level for workers in Italy is considered to be 1,245 euros a month.
“The checks carried out point to a situation of genuine labour exploitation, perpetrated for years to the detriment of a very large number of workers, who receive pay that is disproportionate to the quantity and quality of the work performed,” prosecutors wrote in the document.
“This illegal situation must be brought to an end as soon as possible, also because it involves a significant number of workers who live on earnings below the poverty line.”
Thousands of Foodinho riders ply their trade in Milan and across Italy, using easily identifiable Glovo-branded yellow delivery bags.
Prosecutors said cycle couriers were formally self-employed but in practice worked as employees, because they were managed through an IT platform that determined their working conditions.
Under the judicial control ordered by prosecutors, a court-appointed administrator will ensure the company gives its workers the correct legal status and will monitor compliance with labour rules and conditions.
($1 = 0.8427 euros)
(Reporting by Emilio ParodiEditing by Keith Weir and David Goodman)
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