Delivery services / working conditions | Delivery services: Federal Council calls for direct employment

The working conditions of the food suppliers are very bad. Photo: IMAGO/Jürgen Ritter The Federal Council is calling on the federal government to enshrine in law a direct employment requirement for employees of food delivery services. The state chamber passed a corresponding resolution on September 25th. Companies like Lieferando, Wolt and Uber Eats should therefore employ their drivers directly instead of using them through subcontractors or other structures. In addition, the federal government should examine whether the regulations of the Parcel Carrier Protection Act can be transferred to the industry.

The state initiative responds to increasing problems with bogus self-employment, low wages and employment relationships that are difficult to understand. Labor law duties are often outsourced via subcontractors, while drivers receive their orders via the apps of the major platforms.

According to research by Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg, no drivers have been directly employed by Uber Eats since it entered the German market. Wolt and Lieferando also rely on subcontractors, while at the same time they sometimes employ their own drivers. In January of this year, drivers for Uber Eats subcontractors in Berlin organized a two-day strike. Among other things, they complained about hourly wages of just seven euros and missing payments.

The federal government says it is already working on legal regulation of platform work. The Federal Ministry of Labor is therefore developing a draft bill to implement the EU directive on better working conditions in platform work. The implementation deadline ends on December 2, 2026.

Among other things, the directive is intended to make the employment status of platform workers more transparent and enable measures to be taken against bogus self-employment. Article 3 also provides for measures in dealing with subcontractors. The Ministry of Labor says it is examining all options, including a direct employment requirement.

The Federal Council is demanding that a draft law be presented promptly that implements the EU requirements and also requires direct employment with food delivery services. However, there is no legal timetable for the federal government's response to the resolution. The Federal Ministry of Labor also points to high constitutional and European law hurdles: a direct employment requirement must be justified as a last resort to combat grievances and be based on reliable findings.

The question has already been discussed in the Bundestag. The left-wing faction submitted a motion on January 27th calling for a ban on non-transparent subcontractor chains. The federal government should therefore present a draft law that generally prohibits the use of external staff in platform-based food delivery services. In addition to employees of third-party companies, this should also include the self-employed and temporary workers. The aim is to make the platform operators themselves responsible for the working conditions of their drivers.

The meat industry is seen as a model for the required regulation. There, the Occupational Safety and Health Control Act, which came into force at the beginning of 2021, banned work contracts in the core areas of the industry and obliged companies to employ people directly. Previously, more than half of the employees in slaughterhouses and meat factories were employed by subcontractors.

The consequences are measurable: almost all employees previously employed under work contracts were taken over by the meat companies. According to the Federal Statistical Office, the number of employees subject to social insurance contributions rose from 128,400 in 2020 to 151,500 in 2021 - an increase of 18 percent. Clear responsibility on the part of entrepreneurs, electronic recording of working hours and more controls made it easier to monitor working hours and the minimum wage. The living conditions of many migrant workers also improved.

According to a study by the Economic and Social Sciences Institute of the Hans Böckler Foundation, the problems have not been completely solved. She comes to the conclusion that the ban has reduced the worst forms of exploitation, but that nationwide collective agreements would be necessary for permanently better working conditions.

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