Icelandic labour federation backs Wolt couriers’ campaign

Iceland’s Central Federation of Labour (ASÍ) has expressed strong support for the collective bargaining campaign and actions of couriers working for delivery company Wolt, mbl.is reports.

ASÍ’s central board said the couriers’ work should form part of Iceland’s organised labour market. It urged the company’s workers to contact ASÍ and its affiliated unions to secure employment status and conditions in accordance with legislation and collective agreements.

Call for proper classification

ASÍ called on companies operating digital labour platforms in Iceland to register their workers correctly as employees, become parties to applicable collective agreements and comply with the agreements governing their pay and rights.

The federation said Iceland’s labour movement would never accept social dumping that undermines collectively agreed employment conditions, workers’ rights and the rules of the organised labour market.

ASÍ said it had repeatedly addressed false self-employment and developments linked to the growth of the “gig economy”, including Wolt’s operations in Iceland. Wolt couriers are not permanent employees but are classified as independent contractors.

“Digital management and new business models must never become a way to transfer the responsibility and risks of running a business to individuals,” ASÍ said. “People who in reality work as employees should enjoy the rights and protection that come with that status, regardless of how the work is arranged or the relationship is defined.”