Court orders Rappi to register all delivery drivers

In a unanimous decision, the Labor Court decided that Rappi must register all couriers who provide or have already provided services for the delivery company. The decision of the Regional Labor Court of the 2nd Region (TRT-2) also determines that Rappi can no longer use the services of delivery drivers without registration via CLT. The Court also ordered the company to pay compensation equivalent to 1% of 2022 revenue for “collective harm to workers’ rights”.

The sentence, dated October 10, was handed down in a public civil action filed by the Public Ministry of Labor of São Paulo (MPT-SP) in 2021. The platform was also ordered to pay R$1 billion for collective moral damages.

According to the terms of the ruling, after 30 days of the decision, regardless of the final judgment, Rappi will pay a fine of R$10,000 for each delivery person who was summoned incorrectly, that is, who is not registered.

According to the judges, the company must hire any delivery person who has provided services through the application for a minimum period of six months, between 2017 and May 2023, as long as they have made at least three deliveries in three different months.

In a press release, Rappi informed that it will appeal the decision:

“Rappi informs that it will appeal the decision of the 4th Panel of the Regional Labor Court of the 2nd Region, as it does not agree with the decision made. The STF and the STJ already have several decisions contrary to the one presented by the Court. Furthermore, there are ongoing debates regarding the relationship between couriers and platforms, in which we are actively collaborating with the GT that discusses the matter, highlighting the non-sustainability of the decision. We are available for dialogue and to contribute to any proposals that may arise, both in the City Council and in the National Congress”.

In September, the Labor Court condemned Uber in a similar way

Similar to the current decision on Rappi, last month the Labor Court decided that Uber must register all its active drivers, as well as those who work on the platform from the date of the decision. The digital platform was also ordered to pay R$1 billion for collective moral damages.

In a statement, Uber said it would appeal the decision. “Uber clarifies that it will appeal the decision handed down by the 4th Labor Court of São Paulo and will not adopt any of the measures listed in the sentence before all applicable resources are exhausted”, says the statement. The company also stated that the decision causes “obvious legal uncertainty”.

In a recent report, the People’s Gazette heard experts and labor lawyers about the decision, who highlighted concern about the legal uncertainty that a measure like this brings.

A survey released in May by Datafolha showed that 76% of transport app drivers prefer to maintain the current work model, with autonomy to choose times and refuse rides or deliveries and being able to work on more than one platform simultaneously.