Gig Economy | Deliveroo riders are not employees, UK's Supreme Court rules

Deliveroo’s delivery riders should not be classed as employees, the UK’s highest court has ruled.

The Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that the gig economy giant’s riders cannot be represented by a trade union for the purposes of collective bargaining.

The Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB) had tried to represent a group of Deliveroo riders in order to negotiate pay and conditions with the company, Reuters said.

The union was first refused permission in 2017 on the basis that riders were not "workers" under UK labour law and it has since mounted a number of appeals.