No protection, high risk — the harsh realities faced by SA’s e-riders

In a research project with 60 motorcycle food delivery e-riders in Cape Town and Johannesburg, conducted between July and September 2026, overwhelming evidence revealed that, notwithstanding the benefits of their work and the ease of accessing it, e-riders were exposed to precarious working conditions with limited or no support from platforms. Like other digital platform jobs in South Africa, motorcycle food delivery work is branded as liberation, where e-riders, in partnership with platform owners, enjoy self-employment with flexible working hours. But, behind these velvet gloves is an iron hand. In the interviews conducted with the e-riders, several digital platforms were implicated in exposing workers to dehumanising and repressive working conditions through authoritarian algorithmic management. Whereas the majority of e-riders interviewed believe that they are independent contractors, the excessive monitoring and surveillance, roster, rating and clocking systems and strict rules throw this perception into doubt. The study revealed that 98.3% of e-riders work full-time, with most continuously employed for more than two years. Contrary to the claim that gig work merely provides supplementary part-time income, delivery driving was the sole livelihood for these workers. They relied entirely on pay-per-delivery rather than hourly or wait-time compensation, despite significant occupational health risks.These findings directly undermine the narrative promoted by platform work advocates, who frame food delivery as a flexible, leisurely side-hustle used to supplement primary employment. While such flexibility may exist in other sectors of the gig economy, it is far from the reality of motorcycle food delivery in the two cities studied.Heavy overheadsEven while working up to 12 hours a day, seven days a week, e-riders have no guarantee of securing enough orders to make ends meet. After covering heavy weekly overheads – up to R800 for bike rental and R700 for fuel – alongside monthly expenses such as R200 for data, R1,500 for shared housing, and soaring food costs, riders are left with virtually no room for savings.Even basic equipment comes at a steep price: when companies provide safety gear, they charge riders through exorbitant weekly deductions. If an order is stolen or lost due to poor customer communication, the rider is forced to file a police report without receiving any fuel reimbursement. This leaves riders trapped working overtime just to break even. Compounding the strain, pay rates remain stagnant – averaging around R35 per order, with some riders reporting cuts to as low as R17 per delivery despite soaring fuel costs and inflation.Following the war in the Middle East, coupled with a troubled economy, petrol and diesel prices in South Africa have surged to near or above R30 per litre. Exhaustion and trauma are daily reality for e-riders, many of whom report feeling depressed and burnt out on the job. These conditions contribute to a high risk of road accidents – caused by driver fatigue, hazardous weather, or motor vehicle errors. However, most riders point to motorist hostility as the primary threat, specifically calling out minibus taxi operators for reckless driving, disrespect, and intentionally striking their bikes. Broken limbs and fatal collisions are common; of the 60 e-riders surveyed, most had either survived an accident themselves or lost a colleague on the road.Crime-prone areasBeyond gruelling hours and road hazards, e-riders are forced to navigate dangerous, crime-prone areas – including parts of Bellville, Kensington, Elsies River, Cravenby, Belhar and Malvern in Cape Town, as well as President Park and Hillbrow in Johannesburg. Riders frequently fall victim to robberies, losing phones, customer food, helmets, power banks and cash. In Johannesburg, hijackings are a constant threat, with many reporting personal experience with hijackings or knowing a colleague who was targeted. Despite riders actively sharing warnings about these safety risks on company-managed WhatsApp groups, platform managers consistently ignore their plight.This flies in the face of section 24 of South Africa’s Constitution, which provides for the safety of workers regardless of nationality. Platform companies actively silence e-riders through intimidation and retaliation. Workers face direct threats of expulsion simply for speaking to researchers, while those who voice concerns about working conditions in company WhatsApp groups are targeted and permanently deactivated. This systematic suppression directly violates South Africa's Bill of Rights, which explicitly guarantees freedom of expression (Section 16) and freedom of association (Section 18).In June 2026 in Geneva, the International Labour Organization (ILO) affirmed that digital platform workers, including migrants, have the fundamental right to freedom of association, regardless of whether they are classified as workers or self-employed. Migrant e-riders face pervasive xenophobia and hate speech from customers, restaurant staff, private security guards, and motorists, effectively turning certain neighbourhoods into no-go zones.Discrimination has even spilled over into workplace rivalries: at a fast-food restaurant in Johannesburg, local riders reportedly barred migrant workers from collecting orders, while delivery drivers in Bellville South, Cape Town, Thembisa in Ekurhuleni and the Joburg suburb of Malvern reported direct threats from customers who demanded local e-riders instead.Harsh penaltiesWhile riders on some platforms can decline unprofitable tasks, others face harsh penalties for rejecting orders. On stricter platforms, turning down a delivery is treated as a refusal to work, triggering fines or two-week suspensions. To avoid punishment and protect their algorithmic scores, riders are forced to accept low-paying or dangerous assignments without question. Under these rating systems – which track performance and conduct with customers and restaurant staff – a high score guarantees access to fair-paying orders, whereas a rating below 75% results in immediate dismissal.E-riders in this study said platforms punished them for complaints raised by customers, and for mistakes they never committed, without allowing them an opportunity to be heard. For example, when an e-rider was slow to deliver an order because of delays by the restaurant, the customer reported the e-rider, giving him a negative rating. Some e-riders in the study revealed that although some companies deducted money reportedly for medical insurance, they often did not see the benefits of this. An e-rider who suffered a fractured leg in an accident stated that they never received support, despite contributing to accident insurance. Another e-rider said they pay R230.25 per week for personal accident cover for work-related accidents, but none of his colleagues who were injured at work was compensated. Unlike the European Union which passed the Platform Work Directive in 2024, in South Africa there is currently no policy framework to protect digital platform workers, although all workers are protected under section 23 of the Constitution. However, motorcycle food delivery e-riding has promising potential to provide decent work opportunities to workers. Thus, reform by platforms and swift policy intervention by the government to regulate the sector, can help to build a culture that respects digital platform workers, no matter where they come from. Motorcycle food delivery riders and labour rights advocates must unite to push for meaningful regulatory reform. While digital platforms are frequently praised for generating employment in a contracting labour market, worker organisation and sustained policy advocacy remain critical to securing fair conditions and systemic protections for e-riders. DM