Hyderabad: Telangana Gig and Platforms Workers Union (TGPWU) has demanded justice for women workers who are allegedly facing wage theft, illegal terminations and discriminatory labour practices at Urban Company.
In a press release here on Wednesday, founder and state president of the union, Shaik Salahuddin, highlighted the mental torture and unfair labour practices that women face while working for the company.
“A young woman worker died by suicide two weeks ago when she was unlawfully and arbitrarily fired from the Urban Company. She had been in the job only for 3 months, and was forced to pay Rs 50,000 before joining,” he alleged.
“As proud working women of Telangana, whose hard work is supporting both the company and our families, they need to securing our rights and ensure a safe and dignified work environment,” he added.
The women workers said that though the company promises them high salaries at the time of joining, their wages are deducted without informing them.
“They do not provide us with the jobs they promise, but they continuously take whatever little money we make in the name of the joining fees, credits, cancellation charges, non-payment of rewards, benefits, product prices, convenience fee and more,” said a woman worker.
The women further claimed that the Urban Company enslaves its workers through tampered and automated customer ratings.
“Every time the rating cut-off is changed without warning, hundreds of workers get fired without explanation. Then, a batch of fresh workers is recruited and forced to pay Rs 50,000 to join,” said the workers.
“The rating system is automated through a black-box AI which means the company cannot explain why the rating cut-off keeps changing. The mass terminations have increased in the last year and caused immense financial and mental torture to loyal and skilled women workers,” they added.
Stating the company controls over working hours, times and location of its workers, the women said, “After joining they treat us as servants, shout at us constantly, and make us work during odd hours.”
The workers have also said that they routinely encounter violence, harassment, and discrimination from both the company and the customers.
“As we are called Partners, we demand that Urban Company treat us as employees/workers, and further consult us on major decisions that affect our employment and work experience, facilitate algorithmic accountability, and compensate us for wage theft,” demanded the workers.
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