Arts Of The Working Class Logo

JUST DO THE JOB

When humans do the work of robots.

  • May 05 2021
  • JH

I love cycling in Berlin. Sure as anything you'll find taxis, trams, stupidly large cars, dogs, noise, flowers, used masks, graffiti and trash. And wearing bright orange—us. The only thing that is the same colour in Berlin is the garbage bins. Like the giant rats and the pigeons, it would be hard to go a day in the streets and not see at least one of us. The smell of McDonald's seeping through that back-breaking, ridiculous bag and into our souls; waving to the other riders like the bus drivers; with sore legs, in rain or shine. 

However, there are serious problems with our working conditions: not only from Corona or the tough winter, but simply ingrained within the company ethos. With Lieferando, no communication is the best communication, and the most responsible thing to do is to avoid all responsibility.

Perhaps I can illustrate this with a simple question: "Kann ich die Toilette benutzen?" — "Nein." Nearly every major restaurant chain we visit refuses use of the toilet, and many places don't let anyone inside at all, preferring to serve through windows. They probably feel that paying Lieferando at least 13% on every order is enough already. Lieferando escapes liability by publishing a rather useless list of restaurant toilets available to riders, but requires scrolling for postcodes and searching addresses—to then cycle several kilometres and be told "Nein". In a time-pressured job, the park is easier and quicker. Some dog walkers usually catch me, but what else can I do? In a city which now only has a private sewer, I have to hide in bushes at least once a day to piss (in broad daylight and wearing a glowing orange jacket). It's annoying and undignified –and I have a penis–for others, it's even more so.

As well as annoying, the work itself can be dangerous. Neukölln, Charlottenberg, Mitte—It doesn't matter, reckless driving is rampant in this city. You might not notice, but spend all day riding the streets and you'll see something happen every day: dangerously close overtaking on the street, people blindly opening doors of parked cars, drivers running red lights at high speeds. Twice I've had people drive deliberately at me. We wear bright orange, but to the traffic we're invisible. In a city where 19 cyclists were killed last year and many more injured, more should be done to ensure rider safety, both from the government and from delivery companies. Last year a Lieferando cyclist was killed in Frankfurt along with a pedestrian by an SUV. Looking at pictures of the crash, with that glaring orange bag sitting on the street–probably with someone's dinner inside–I wonder...could that have been me?

Riders need more guidance than some reflective equipment and a YouTube video. But delivery companies don't value our safety enough to warrant paying for proper training. Besides, minimal interaction is how Lieferando does things. It's both a positive and a negative: no boss breathing down your neck, but also no help when you need it. How many holidays do I have left? What happened to last month's bonus? Why are my online tips disappearing? Good luck finding out.

 

"The most striking aspect of the algorithm is that we are no longer permitted to question any of its decisions."

 

Having a computer as a boss isn't always easy. "Why is the algorithm sending me over there?" "How can I pick up food from a time in the past?" "A restaurant eight kilometres away! This is bullshit!" Everyone has an opinion on how it works, but nobody truly knows. It's likely that given the current progression of machine learning, the developers themselves don't know either. Although it would be surprising if its first priority was anything other than maximising profit. 

The most striking aspect of the algorithm is that we are no longer permitted to question any of its decisions. There once was a clause in the contract which stated humans—the dispatchers specifically—were there to intervene on errors or absurd deliveries. This clause has been recently scrubbed. Dispatchers nowadays perform mainly perfunctory roles: pausing your shift if you get a puncture (unpaid of course), or contacting customer service if a hungry recipient complains (or doesn't answer their door, or "just went out to buy a coke"). They say: "There's nothing I can do. It's the algorithm. Just do the job." Refusing means almost certainly being fired.

This shift is a worrying turn of events. Not only does it encourage dispatchers and management to hide behind a shady computer system, escaping any form of culpability, it also leads to a very alienating experience for riders.

Lieferando, as they see it, doesn’t need our opinion—we solely do the delivery, and all the "useful" information is automatically logged, processed, and reassessed by a computer for the next time. Complaints about abusive customers, problems at restaurants, or any other day-to-day issues are met with a standard text reply: "Thanks for the information." Our personal input is neither encouraged nor wanted.

The danger is that we have become totally unnecessary as a feedback loop to improve our working conditions, or even the business itself. As our voices go unheard, our worthlessness as human beings increases. From the capitalist point of view, like workers in factories we are merely doing the mundane, repetitive job that is still too difficult or too costly for a machine to do. We are just another cog, and the more robotic Lieferando can make our work, the greater our work is devalued. For when a robot tells you what to do you simply become a robot yourself. Why not have robots do the work that humans don't want to do, instead of having humans do the work of robots? Delivering food by bicycle doesn't have to be robotic! Nor does it need to be exploitative; it can actually be quite enjoyable!

In contrast to this, the delivery gig economy was born from autonomy: choosing when to work and what jobs to accept. Although, as the dials of algorithms and shifty bonus schemes were slowly turned up, the exploitation got worse and autonomy eroded. Our shifts can now change to times we didn't choose. We are discouraged from taking any holidays because our holiday pay is much less than if we just worked (and many of us cannot afford to do that). We are kept in the dark regarding everything from Corona testing to how our holidays are calculated. But maybe the most annoying thing is that frankly there is no relationship between the huge profits Lieferando makes and our salary or working conditions. 

Rights were only won through innumerable battles, many which are still ongoing: in the London Deliveroo strikes, in the inspiring NYC demos, and in China, where Mengzhu, a true hero amongst thousands of delivery couriers, has been jailed by the Communist Party for speaking out against exploitation. I'm grateful to these riders and those that fought before me. It's because of them that we have a minimum wage payment. But there is still so much to be done. 

Our current lack of autonomy in Berlin was highlighted during the winter. It often takes things to go wrong to highlight a problem. Just as Corona highlighted a wealth of problems across society, a tough winter brought things home for Lieferando. Riders were forced to work in dangerous conditions, in temperatures below -10°C on snow covered roads, day after day. "If you can't make the order by bicycle, do it walking. Do the job," dispatch would bully us. Being forced to deliver cold food an hour late after pushing a bicycle 6km in a snowstorm is a new low. The grim situation highlighted what Lieferando didn't want anyone to know: it doesn't give a shit about its riders. It took the combined efforts of the Fau (Die Freie Arbeiterinnen- und Arbeiter-Union), the works council, and riders from all delivery companies in order to stop the orders. Without this determined organisation and action, winter would have been a lot more unbearable and significantly more dangerous.

Organising is important. It is especially important in companies like Lieferando where it is actively discouraged. There are no official groups within the company or ways to meet fellow riders except amongst ourselves on the streets. The company structure is designed that way: if you make it difficult for riders to discuss, complain, meet and organise, you can get away with more exploitation. It is tied in with why so many riders are from other countries: they may not know their rights, may be afraid to complain or stand up for themselves, and can often be in a more precarious position than their German counterparts.

If you're a rider, get in touch with others, try to join a Telegram group: there are many. If you're a customer, be grateful: you never quite know what the rider has gone through just to deliver your dinner.

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