Australia has introduced its first minimum standards for food and grocery delivery workers, giving riders and drivers on platforms such as Uber Eats and DoorDash a guaranteed earnings floor for the time they are actively completing deliveries.
The new rules, set by the Fair Work Commission, are expected to affect around 250,000 gig workers across the country.
Under the interim standards, workers will receive minimum rates based on the vehicle they use:
- $31.30 an hour for e-bike riders
- $31.80 an hour for motorcycle riders
- $32 an hour for drivers using cars
The rates apply to engaged time, meaning the period from accepting a delivery to completing it.
Workers will not be paid while waiting for a new job to appear on the app, but they will be paid for time spent waiting at a restaurant or store after accepting an order.
Platforms must top up earnings
Uber Eats, DoorDash and other platforms will have to calculate a worker’s average earnings over a 21-day period.
If the worker’s pay falls below the minimum earnings floor for engaged time, the platform will be required to make up the difference.
The new rates are higher than the national minimum wage.
New insurance protections
The reforms also introduce new protections beyond pay.
Platforms will now need to provide a reasonable minimum level of personal accident insurance for workers.
Delivery workers will still be responsible for the cost of insuring their own vehicles.
The standards also introduce:
- a new worker feedback forum
- a formal dispute resolution process
- a right to unpaid time away
- consultation requirements when platforms make major business changes
Platforms must also notify and consult workers about significant decisions, including plans to leave the Australian market.
A major shift for the gig economy
For years, most food delivery workers in Australia have operated as independent contractors.
That meant they were outside many of the protections available to employees, including minimum wages, annual leave and sick leave.
The changes follow the Albanese government’s Closing Loopholes reforms, passed in 2024, which gave the Fair Work Commission new powers to set legally enforceable minimum standards for some “employee-like” workers.
The Transport Workers Union has described the reforms as a historic development after years of campaigning for better conditions in the sector.
Platforms back the agreement
Uber Eats said the new standards create a safety net while preserving the flexibility many delivery workers value.
DoorDash also welcomed the outcome, saying the agreement showed that unions, government and industry could find common ground without removing the flexibility that attracts people to gig work.
The standards are currently interim, meaning they can still be reviewed or changed.
For thousands of food delivery workers, however, they represent a major shift: greater income certainty, better insurance protection and stronger rights in one of Australia’s fastest-growing areas of work.
