US gig worker murders expose apps’ safety gaps, says labour group

A food delivery man crosses the street in Times Square in Manhattan in New York City. Gig Workers Rising says app firms must do more to protect drivers from crime while they are out on the streets working. — AFP

LOS ANGELES: Two years after fleeing political persecution in Bangladesh, Salauddin Bablu was stabbed to death in Manhattan by a man who stole the electric bike he used to deliver food during long shifts for the Grubhub app.

“When Salauddin died, his family lost everything,” Bablu’s brother-in-law, Muhammad Ahsan, said by phone from New York City, adding that Bablu used to send half his earnings to his wife and children back in Bangladesh.