The Employment Inspectorate, which operates in Brussels, has been serious for dealers engaged in gigantic numerical platforms, and the investigation draws attention: Over half of the distributors in the Belgian capital are paperless, in 24 of the 43 controls processed this year the worker has no paper. Most of them are for Uber Eats and Deliveroo platforms, the multinationals that are making huge profits. Distributors who travel the city from one end to the other are not linked by work agreement to these platforms, have an autonomous status to fulfill the missions spread by the platform through algorithms. This implies extreme flexibilization, as in the end platforms avoid the rights and duties guaranteed by the Labor Code.

This figure reflects the existence of people who make use of the powerlessness and extreme misery of non-paper people to make money quoted. In particular, a person of nationality processes on his behalf the link with the platform, then leaving the name and access to the platform by a paper commission, becoming a “name provider” in law terminology. Some of them have an important source of income by registering on different platforms and selling at least different immigrants. That the precarious explode even further to alleviate its precariousness. Here we are.

According to various surveys, they are asked to pay up to half of the remuneration, reducing the working time in the rest to a salary of EUR 2.5. “These self-employed have become exploiters, accumulate performance from another’s work until receiving 1,000 euros a month in art and that without cycling!”, as can be seen in the report Deliveroo, Uber Eats: auto-entrepreneurs précaires et esclavage moderne (“Deliveroo, Uber Eats: precarious self-employed and modern slavery”). It could have existed otherwise, that is, that capitalism channelled that extreme flexibility to offer those who have no resources access to a source of income, the same, but from the next step and solidarity. But in general, what prevails is not generosity. North Africa, Afghanistan, Syria, Pakistan and South America are undocumented distributors of different origins.

Nada Ladra, of the group Belgian distributors in Lucha, explains the evolution of the sector: “The profile of the dealers has changed: at first it was young people who split up for Uber and Delivero, students, middle-low class. It wasn’t the precariousness we see today.” This is the result of greater flexibility of these platforms – which does not depend on the number of pay allocations and working time; the obligation to reach heat over long and short distances; and others – “Who will continue with the worsening working conditions: the precarious, the needy, often paperless”. The risk of uninsured distribution is known, as well as cycling or scooter, as soon as possible.

Taking risks to be expelled

Although there is no official data, according to the Accident du travail: silence des ouvriers meurent de Matthieu Lepin on Twitter, we know that since 2019 there are at least ten distributors in the French State who have lost their lives. “Each distribution costs less than five euros. Thus, they have to work much more than 35 euros a week to obtain a stimulating salary”, can be read in Bastamag Accidents du travail non déclarés, pas ou mal indemnisés: les livreurs de repas payent le prix fort (“Undeclared work accidents, bad or totally covered: priests distributors have to pay expensive”). To put many or distribute them as much as possible in each of them, with the risk involved... It is clear that they are also at risk of being expelled from the State, because if they have police control they are sent to the detention centre and then to their place of birth.

The administrative situation makes it difficult to publicly denounce and collectively mobilise the exploitation suffered. “It’s dangerous to take the floor in the plaza,” says Nada Ladra. Mainstream media has increased police controls. One of the main exercises is how to act in favour of the rights of distributors, both for non-paper and for those with local citizenship, without endangering the illegal ones, and without closing that bad but unique source of income.

Distributors' groups developed in recent years are calling for the transition from autonomous status to employee status. Because it involves guaranteeing labour rights: social security, unemployment and return contributions. They say that it would also be in the interests of non-paper companies, because they could prove that they have worked for the regularisation procedure. They would also be more likely to combat racist offensives, attacks and discourages at work, which have protested against racism suffered, supported by trade unions and groups.

There are also those who hire directly, such as Frichti or Stuart platforms. In the period of confinement due to the coronavirus plague, applications grew, with a shortage of labor, and doors were opened to the undocumented, accepting the original passports. The fact is that, as soon as the need has been called, the accounts were closed the day to avoid fines the following day. Frichti closed 200 accounts, while Stuart closed 10 times, following the “law enforcement obligation”. In April last year, 66 undocumented dealers went to court, supported by the group of autonomous distributors for CLAP platforms and the CGT trade union. They demand dignity and regularizations.

The founder of the collective Jérôme Pimot CLAP knows that these platforms are moving thanks to the exploitation of the paperless: “[Contra Frichti] shows the widespread exploitation of the undocumented. Failing that, they should work with the most important legal distributors to improve working conditions, forcing them to improve conditions. But clandestine people can drown without limits under the work tower.”