Grab drivers ‘strike’ over huge cut in bonuses
Grab drivers in Nakhon Si Thammarat are protesting after the delivery firm apparently cut their “diligence” bonuses overnight. Grab food delivery drivers are considered frontline workers in the battle against Covid-19,
risking their health to offer an essential service during the lockdown period.
On Tuesday (June 16), Waratkrit Ue-Trakul, 34, led a group of nearly 100 Grab Food drivers in the southern city in a rally to demand fairness from Grab.
“Nearly 100 of us have been working as ‘partners’ to deliver food for Grab for the past two or three months [of lockdown]. In the past, if any of us scored 165 points, they would receive a diligence allowance of Bt460 per day. But in the last two days, it appears the company has adjusted the rate of compensation for our diligence, so drivers now have to earn 290 points before being rewarded Bt500,” said Waratkrit.
“We cannot accept this. This new standard means we have to work twice as hard for reduced compensation, which is not worth it. Importantly, we have to rush to do more deliveries to score more points … which is putting us and others at risk of accidents.”
The new demands on Grab drivers also coincide with the start of the wet season, when roads have been made more dangerous by heavy rain.
“So we have come together to demand fairness from the company,” Waratkrit added. “In the last two or three days, we have stopped working and shut down the delivery system. We won’t accept delivery jobs from the company until it gives us a satisfactory answer.”