Parcelforce delivery drivers have launched a worker status legal claim against their employer, Royal Mail, as they believe they have been misclassified as self-employed.
Law firm Leigh Day, which is representing the drivers, and their union the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB), claim that thousands of drivers could be eligible to join the claim for compensation.
The drivers say they have been mislabelled as self-employed ‘owner drivers’, but Leigh Day argues that they should be classified as ‘workers’ due to the way they work in practice, which would afford them the right to basic workers’ entitlements such as the national living wage, sick pay and holiday pay.
An estimated 25% of Parcelforce’s drivers are self-employed.
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The issue came to light when three drivers raised concerns with the IWGB, which approached Leigh Day to represent thousands more Parcel drivers in a group action claim at an employment tribunal.
Self-employed drivers are eligible to join the claim if they drove for Parcelforce within the past 10 weeks. Leigh Day estimates that they could be entitled to £21,000 in compensation each if the claim is successful.
Liana Wood, a solicitor at Leigh Day, said: “In our view, Parcelforce drivers working for Royal Mail should be entitled to workers’ rights such as receiving holiday pay and being paid the national minimum wage. Often these drivers have worked for Royal Mail for many years and seen their working conditions steadily decline and take home pay decrease, on top of a cost of living crisis. We believe thousands of owner drivers are eligible to join the claim for workers’ rights.”
The IWGB said: “These drivers are the latest to join a long list of workers across a growing number of sectors whose basic protections have been completely eroded by the gig economy. Royal Mail’s shameful adoption of these exploitative practices must be challenged, and this lawsuit is giving thousands of workers that opportunity. We encourage owner drivers up and down the country to join the union and the claim – it’s time for Parcelforce to pay up.”
Marc Francis, who worked as an owner driver for Parcelforce for 10 years, described the job as a “living nightmare”.
“Working without any rights or protections felt like walking a tightrope with no safety net to catch me if I fell. I didn’t get sick pay when I needed time off due to bowel disease and, in fact, Royal Mail deducted an additional £794 from my wages to cover the absence of two weeks,” he claimed.
“I think it’s disgusting how they treated me, but I know I’m not the only one. I’m committed to seeing justice for myself and all the other drivers affected by this issue at Parcelforce.”
A Parcelforce spokesperson said: “All of our owner drivers are self-employed, and we refute any claims that this is not the case. Our self-employed drivers play a valuable role in delivering parcels to homes and businesses across the UK, and are free to provide their services to other businesses. Our owner drivers can choose whether to personally make deliveries and collections or arrange for other drivers to do them.
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“We are unable to comment on an ongoing legal claim.”
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