Dubai’s Food Delivery Services Are More Dangerous for Their Workers

Activists¹ are worried about a growing number of deaths and injuries among food delivery² riders in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

The activists say the coronavirus health crisis³ has pushed millions of people indoors⁴. The restrictions⁵ have resulted in a sharp increase in online orders for delivery.

That increase has changed Dubai's streets and stores. It has brought motorcycle riders, mostly from Pakistan, to the work of food delivery. The industry has few rules and can be dangerous.

Most riders are paid $2 to $3 for each delivery instead of hourly pay. This leads riders to race across the city to keep up with the orders. It also gives them a reason to try to deliver as many orders as possible. The conditions riders usually face have become even more dangerous because of restrictions put in place to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Dubai is a rich city that runs on low-paid migrant labor⁶ from Africa and Asia. Workers in Dubai have few protections. They depend on sponsors⁷ who guarantee their work visas.

Karen Young is with the Middle East Institute, a research group in Washington, D.C. She said the visa sponsors are usually responsible for mistreatment. She said, "That's where people feel they're unable to change jobs or even to complain about working conditions."

On Dubai's streets, more than 12 delivery drivers who spoke⁸ to the Associated Press said they knew of two or three co-workers who were killed every month. Many said they have bad memories of seeing coworkers killed.

Dubai recorded 448 deaths from car accidents in 2019. There are not yet official numbers for 2020. But safety activists say at least 70 delivery riders were hospitalized last year in Dubai, including 24 who died.

The state-linked Emirati newspaper The National reported that 12 delivery riders were killed in April. A police official has said, "When money comes into the equation⁹, safety is put aside."

Companies like Deliveroo, based in Britain, and Talabat use other companies to provide them with drivers and vehicles. Industry experts say delivery drivers in Dubai often lack protective¹⁰ equipment and safety training. The companies provide $27 a month for vehicle services and repair.

Dubai's Road and Transportation Authority¹¹ told The Associated Press that safety remains¹² most important as it supports the delivery market's growth. Officials said they have issued new rules like reducing how far drivers can ride.

Riders for Deliveroo and Talabat said they received limited insurance. It pays a few hundred dollars with no death or accident payments¹³. Several riders who were in accidents said they returned to Pakistan to get healthcare after their insurance would not pay the costs in Dubai.

Mohammed Asin is a delivery rider in Dubai. He said he never would have left his family in Sialkot, Pakistan, if it were not for his childhood classmate, 22-year-old Hamed Shafiq who rode for Talabat.

"He kept saying, ‘Join me, this is the dream. We can make real money. Our families can have a better life,'" Asin said.

On February 16, Asin landed in Dubai and moved in with Shafiq. He signed up for Deliveroo ready to live out the dream.

The next day, his friend was dead. He was hit by a car that went into his path. Asin, however, keeps delivering.

Words in This Story

delivery – n. the act of taking something to a person or place

visa – n. an official mark or stamp on a passport that allows someone to enter or leave a country usually for a particular reason

complain – v. to say or write that you are unhappy, sick, uncomfortable, etc., or that you do not like something

equation – n. a complicated¹⁴ situation or issue

insurance – n. an agreement in which a person makes regular payments to a company and the company promises to pay money if the person is injured or dies, or to pay money equal to the value of something (such as a house or car) if it is damaged, lost, or stolen

1 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 delivery   

n.交付；投递；分娩；解救者；演讲的风格

参考例句：

• The strike caused a great delay in the delivery of the mail.这次罢工严重地延误了邮件的投递。
• He was employed at the local grocery store as a delivery boy.他受雇于当地杂货店当送货员。

3 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

4 indoors   

adv.(在)室内，(在)户内

参考例句：

• Because of the coldness of the weather we stayed indoors.我们因天气寒冷呆在家里。
• It is very cold outside,you'd better come indoors across the board.外面很冷，你们所有人最好都进屋。

5 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

6 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

7 sponsors   

n.保人( sponsor的名词复数 )；（广播电视节目、音乐会或运动会的）赞助者；（培训或教育的）资助者；（法案等的）倡议者v.赞助( sponsor的第三人称单数 )；资助（某人的培训或教育）；为慈善活动捐资；倡议

参考例句：

• The race organizers are trying to attract sponsors. 比赛的组织者在想方设法吸引赞助者。
• They become official sponsors and put their logos on stadium walls. 他们成为正式赞助者，从而能在赛场周围的墙上挂上他们公司的广告牌。 来自辞典例句

8 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

9 equation   

n.方程式，等式，等同

参考例句：

• The solution can be expressed by a mathematical equation.答案可用一个数学方程式来表示。
• This equation is known as the ideal gas law.这个等式被叫做理想气体定律。

10 protective   

adj.防护的，保护的

参考例句：

• A mother naturally feels protective towards her children.做母亲的天生要保护自己的孩子。
• We feel safe with a protective device in the house.我们因为家里有了防护装置而感到安全。

11 authority   

n.当局，官方；权力，权威，威信；当权者

参考例句：

• He is recognized internationally as an authority in this field.国际上承认他是这方面的一个权威。
• Professor White is looked upon as an authority on mathematics.怀特教授被看成数学权威。

12 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

13 payments   

n.支付，付款，缴纳，报酬( payment的名词复数 )；付出的[要付出的]款项；报答，报偿

参考例句：

• Welfare payments cease as soon as an individual starts a job. 一旦就业，即停发福利救济。
• The law can compel fathers to make regular payments for their children. 这项法律可强制父亲定期支付子女的费用。

14 complicated   

adj.错综复杂的，麻烦的，结构复杂的

参考例句：

• The poem is so complicated that I cannot make out its meaning.这首诗太复杂，我理解不了它的意思。
• This is the most complicated case I have ever handled.这是我所处理过的最为复杂的案子。