Couriers and Logistics Branch

We are a union organised for couriers and by couriers. We protect our own interests by standing together to win fair working conditions and higher rates that are long overdue in the industry. We will not stop actively campaigning until we achieve our aims.

What has the Couriers Branch won?

• 2016 - Couriers at eCourier, CitySprint, Addison Lee, and Excel fight for and win 'worker status', meaning holiday pay and pensions.
• 2017 - IWGB members set up Deliveroo national committee. Riders go on strike, win temporary hiring freeze.
• 2018 - Riders take strike action around the same time in Chile, Colombia, the US, Belgium, Italy, Germany, the Philippines, Japan and the UK. In London, UberEats couriers and workers at Wetherspoons, McDonald’s and TGI Fridays went on strike, with UberEats couriers and Uber drivers occuping Uber’s headquarters. Pay rises temporarily.
• 2018 - Around 150 riders at The Doctors Laboratory in London win union recognition through strikes and protests, meaning their elected reps can do union work on company time.
• 2019 - Riders at The Doctors Laboratory win holiday pay, sick pay, all equipment provided for them, and significant pay rises.
• 2019 - The IWGB National Deliveroo Committee launches a national bulletin in different languages. More Deliveroo strikes over low wages, winning meetings with Deliveroo, plus temporary hiring freeze and temporary rises in pay.
• 2019 - The IWGB's “Roovolt” organising project is launched through funding from a global union, the ITF.
  This includes doing coffee stalls to recruit riders to the union, doing research into Deliveroo, doing social media against Deliveroo, training riders to be union activists, doing casework to support riders with issues like suspensions.
• 2020 - City Sprint riders win worker status, meaning holiday pay and pensions.
• 2020 - Pandemic, IWGB wins delivery riders right to use restaurant toilets.
• 2021 - On Deliveroo's IPO day (when they were listed on stock market for first time) IWGB organised a strike and motorcade through London. The Financial Times called it 'the worst IPO in London's history' and riders won schemes for sick pay, parental pay, and training on tackling harassment.
• 2021 - Stuart Delivery cuts the pay and riders in Sheffield go on strike. With the union's help they spread it across the north of England and sustain it for several months. Stuart introduces pay for waiting times, reduces unfair terminations, and sends their head manager to meet with the drivers personally. The strike comes close to winning, but is ultimately not effective in winning a pay rise.
• 2021 - IWGB organises protests and takes Uber to court over racist facial recognition software. Uber scraps the software in response.
• 2022 - Successful local strikes for respect, toilet access, and indoor waiting at Wingstop in Dalston and KFC in Sheffield. Successful fights against the council to get parking areas for riders in Dalston, Islington and Romford. Successful resistance of an immigration raid in Dalston.
• 2022 - IWGB members working for Stuart Delivery win thousands of pounds in compensation following a group legal claim.
• 2023 - IWGB builds links with local community groups who fight for undocumented migrants and take action to defend people from immigration raids. Both groups work on making leaflets to inform riders of their rights if they are stopped by police or immigration.
• 2023 - Medical couriers at The Doctors Laboratory win a 5% pay rise and a £2k bonus through negotiations.
• 2023 - Riders at Pedal Me, a small courier company, win union recognition and successfully fight unwanted contract changes.
• 2024 - IWGB launches another group legal claim against Just Eat to get compensation for holiday pay that people are due.

Being in the union is not just about pay rises, it is also about being part of a community of hundreds of other couriers and addressing problems that we all face together.

Union members are supported by other members, branch caseworkers, and the union legal department. The union contains a wealth of experience and skills that you can draw on to support your campaigns, and to address problems you face at work.

There are lots of ways we can address issues in the courier industry - by taking collective action like boycotts and strikes, by pursuing legal cases, or by using the union's connections with the press and MPs to put pressure on companies.

Become a member today and get involved in changing the courier industry for the better! You can find some useful resources at the bottom of this page.

Stay up to date

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook to find out what we're doing and support our campaigns!

Twitter: @IWGB_CLB

Facebook: IWGB Couriers and Logistics Branch

Get in touch

You can get in touch with the IWGB Couriers and Logistics Branch by emailing clbcoordinator@iwgb.co.uk. If you would like to speak to a specific committee member, just ask.

Branch coordinator: 07565 683705

Committee

Chair: Shaf Hussain
Vice Chair: Shirley Marron
Secretary: Calum Rogers
Treasurer: Richard Murie
BAME Officer: Larbi Neron

Local networks

There are local couriers networks all over Britain.

• Berkshire: Twitter
• Birmingham
• Bristol: Twitter and Facebook
• Cymru (Wales): Twitter
• Nottingham: Twitter and Facebook
• Plymouth
• Scotland: Twitter and Facebook
• Sheffield: Twitter and Facebook
• York: Twitter and Facebook

Donate to the Strike Hardship Fund

The IWGB Couriers and Logistics Branch have set up a Strike Hardship Fund and support our members that can least afford to take action.

The courier industry is notorious for companies denying basic rights such as holiday pay and a guaranteed minimum wage through mis-classifying workers as 'independent contractors'.

Many of our members are on low, insecure pay. The financial burden of taking time off work can sometimes prevent someone from being able to go on strike. By giving people the opportunity to apply to our Strike Hardship Fund we hope to stop this from happening.

We are a grassroots, member-led union, currently punching well above our weight by taking on rogue courier firms, multi-million pound companies, and tech giants like Deliveroo. Your donation will allow our most financially insecure members to take part in our actions and exercise their right to peaceful protest.

You can find the policy on accessing the Strike Hardship Fund here.

Resources

Read the branch Constitution (updated September 2023).

Know your rights (from our campaign at The Doctors Laboratory):

• English
• Portuguese

Volunteering

We welcome volunteers to support the union's work, particularly casework and making phone calls to members. Portuguese, Bengali and Romanian speakers especially encouraged to get in touch!

If you would like to volunteer to support IWGB members, please email Seb at sebastienflais@iwgb.co.uk or complete the volunteer sign-up form.

Research requests

Due to the fairly large number of research requests we receive, we are only able to accept requests at our discretion, depending on capacity. Ideally, at least two of the following will apply:

1. Participants will be financially compensated for their time,
2. You are able to give some time to volunteer for the branch,
3. The outcomes will be politically useful in achieving the union's aims.

Please email clbchair@iwgb.co.uk with any research requests.