Turlock Instacart shopper weighs strike over working conditions, pay
A Turlock woman who works for Instacart said she may join a strike against the grocery delivery app for safer working conditions, which she said is essential as she and her co-workers shop in crowded stores during the coronavirus pandemic.
“I feel badly for the customers that it will affect,” said 38-year-old Andrea, who asked that her last name not be used and said on a busy day she shops for and deliver groceries to about 10 households. “But I think they (Instacart) should do a lot more to protect us.”
Andrea said anything that makes Instacart workers safer also makes Instacart customers safer.
Workers have asked that Instacart give them hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes, $5 in hazard pay for each order and expanded sick leave. Instacart responded Sunday in a statement on the website Medium, saying it is addressing these concerns, including providing full-service shoppers (those who shop for and deliver groceries) hand sanitizer within a week.
The Gig Workers Collective responded with its own statement on Medium, calling Instacart’s measures insulting and not enough, adding workers had been asking for hand sanitizer for weeks. (Andrea said she buys her own hand sanitizer, disinfectant and other cleaning supplies to limit her exposure to the coronavirus.)
The collective had said a strike would start Monday. It’s not clear how widespread it was among the 200,000 workers who work for Instacart. (The San Francisco-based company recently announced plans to bring on an additional 300,000 full-service shoppers to meet demand.)
The collective did not respond to an email seeking comment. Instacart issued a statement Monday: “We respect the rights of shoppers to provide us feedback and voice their concerns. As it relates to today’s actions, we’ve seen absolutely no impact to Instacart’s operations. Today, we saw 40% more shoppers on the platform compared to the same day and time last week. Over the last 72 hours, more groceries were sold on our platform than ever before.”
The statement reiterated the steps Instacart said it has taken and is taking to safeguard its employees, shoppers and customers.
Andrea said she could afford to go on strike for several days because she and her two young children live with her grandfather. She said she pays rent but said her grandfather is fine with her being late if she decides to strike. Andrea took Monday off after working at least 14 days in a row.
“I’m at a little bit of an advantage,” Andrea said. “Some people cannot afford to take time off to strike. If I can help people out and make a difference for other people, I’d do it.”
Andrea said while shopping Sunday she spoke with five other Instacart shoppers. She said all of them told her they could not afford to go on strike. Andrea said in a busy week she earns about $600, including tips.
She said she can take other app-based delivery jobs in the gig economy if she went on strike but said they don’t pay as well as Instacart. “I will support my fellow Instacart workers as much as I can,” she said, adding she does not think a strike would last more than a couple of days. “I could hold out three to five days. I don’t want my grandpa to be burdened (financially.) He doesn’t need that.”
Andrea started working for Instacart in December because she wanted a flexible job that she could work around her children’s school schedules. She said her customers primarily were seniors and people without cars. But since the outbreak, she has been shopping for and delivering groceries to people from every walk of life.
This story was originally published March 31, 2020 at 7:27 AM.
