Dubai delivery drivers walk off job in rare protest over pay

Food-delivery drivers protesting wage cuts and grueling working conditions have gone on an extremely rare strike in Dubai

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- Food-delivery drivers protesting wage cuts and grueling working conditions went on an extremely rare strike in Dubai over the weekend — a mass walkout that paralyzed one of the country’s main delivery apps and revived concerns about labor conditions in the emirate.

The strike started late Saturday and ended early Monday, when London-based Deliveroo agreed in a letter to riders to restore workers’ pay to $2.79 per delivery instead of the proposed rate of $2.38 that had ignited the work stoppage as the company tried to cut costs amid surging fuel prices.

The Amazon-backed firm also backtracked on its plan to extend working shifts to 14 hours a day.

“It is clear that some of our original intentions have not been clear and we are listening to riders,” Deliveroo said in a statement to The Associated Press. “We have therefore currently paused all changes and will be working with our agency riders to ensure we have a structure that works for everyone and has our agency riders’ best interest at heart.”