HR Ministry: Govt to ensure win-win situation in Foodpanda riders' protest

PETALING JAYA: The Human Resources Ministry has stepped in to probe grievances by online food delivery service Foodpanda riders against their company's management.

The ministry said that earlier reports revealed that the protest resulted from riders' unhappiness over Foodpanda's decision to revise its service fee, resulting in reduced payments for riders.

“The ministry will ensure a win-win situation between Foodpanda riders and the company, ” it said in a statement on Wednesday (Oct 2).

The ministry also promised to protect the welfare of groups in the “digital economy”.

“We will raise the issue in the upcoming Cabinet meeting, ” it said.

More than 200 Foodpanda riders staged a strike against the new payment scheme on Monday (Sept 30), with pictures and videos widely circulated online.

The riders had urged Foodpanda to revert to the original payment scheme and threatened more protests in other states should the company refuse to address their grievances.

Riders reportedly claimed that under the new scheme, they would not be paid for the actual working hours, as they will only be paid between RM4.50 and RM7 for batches of one to six hours.

In its statement, the ministry said it had met with the affected riders on Monday to understand more about the matter.

It added that the Kuala Lumpur Industrial Court director and representatives from the Department of Labour Peninsular Malaysia met the riders on Tuesday (Oct 1) evening.

Also on Tuesday, Youth and Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman met Foodpanda riders at his residence to listen to their plight.