Delivery drivers working for efood, one of Greece’s leading online food delivery companies, have announced a 24-hour strike on Feb. 12, coinciding with Tsiknopempti — the popular pre-Lent celebration traditionally marked by barbecues and heavy meat consumption during Greece’s Carnival season.
The walkout represents an escalation of ongoing labor actions, following work stoppages on Nov. 28 and 29, as workers intensify pressure on the company to address long-standing demands over pay, working conditions and transparency.
Among their central demands is the signing of a collective labor agreement that would provide wage increases for all efood employees, including delivery drivers, office staff, warehouse workers and market employees. Workers are also calling for a minimum guaranteed hourly wage, pay raises combined with greater transparency in how compensation is calculated, coverage for workplace accidents and the free provision of personal protective equipment for freelancers. In addition, they are seeking the option for freelancers who wish to do so to convert their contracts into salaried positions and an end to subcontracting arrangements in favor of direct hiring by the company.
In their announcement, workers said the company has continued to avoid negotiations, particularly on issues affecting freelancers. They raised concerns about what they described as a lack of transparency in the platform’s algorithm, as well as unresolved questions surrounding payments and health and safety conditions.
Workers also criticized the company’s recent move to introduce seven-day work schedules for office staff, saying the measure was implemented unilaterally. “We refuse and resist,” the statement said.
They also noted that improvements have recently been made regarding work zones and delivery distances for salaried drivers, with limits placed on travel ranges. The company has committed, through Greece’s Labor Inspectorate, to rationalizing daily mileage and ensuring that shifts end near the starting point or another designated location. A similar arrangement has reportedly been extended to freelancers, allowing them to return closer to home on their final route of the day. Workers say these changes demonstrate that collective demands can produce tangible results.
On the day of the strike, workers plan to gather at the company’s headquarters to demand a specific date for a meeting covering all outstanding issues. They are urging colleagues not to accept any extra bonuses that may be offered on the day of the strike, describing such incentives as an attempt to undermine collective action and break the mobilization.
