Gorilla drivers on strike again

The demands are still the same, Gorillas continues not to address the criticism of the workers. Drivers have been on strike at three department stores in Berlin since Friday, with much solidarity coming from other "gig economy" workers.

While LinkedIn just named Gorillas the most attractive start-up in Germany, this assessment would certainly be different for the employees of the start-up. Since last Friday, there have been wildcat strikes again in the Schöneberg and Bergmannkiez department stores in the capital, followed by Gesundbrunnen on Saturday. Symbolically, the riders of the department stores turned their bikes around in front of the warehouses and stopped working. Other workers in the so-called "gig economy" were able to show solidarity by sharing photos on social media of their bikes also turned over. The company responded by sending management staff to meet the strikers.

The workers are using their strike to reiterate demands for better working hours, equipment provided by Gorillas such as bicycles and mobile phones, and changes to probationary periods and conditions in contracts. The cause, as with the last strike, was the dismissal of an employee on the last day of his probationary period, as one employee told the Young World tells.

The mood among the drivers has been tense all week, the reason being that Gorillas sent transfer contracts to two-thirds of its operations staff, who will be employed by a subsidiary from October. This could also be linked to the attempt by Gorillas employees to form a works council. So far, the process has only progressed as far as the election of an election committee.

In addition, workers say Gorillas is using a new rider coordination program that calculates how many drivers are needed based on how busy Gorillas is. In the process, however, shifts can end at midnight and begin at seven the next day, which is prohibited by labor law because an eleven-hour rest period is mandatory.