“Bijoy Paul had been a delivery rider in the gig economy. He had died on the road,and the platform had claimed that his death had nothing to with them because he wasn’t an employee,” Burke told the annual Ron McCallum debate on Monday night.
However,the platform said Paul’s family had been compensated over his death.
Burke said in a speech given remotely that he had met friends of Paul. “The students I was meeting with were the people who had paid for his funeral. There was no sense of obligation from the platform to the people who they controlled,who had no sense over their pay and conditions,” he said.
An Uber spokesperson said:“Our hearts remain with the family of Bijoy Paul,and we have provided them with a range of support since his passing.”
“The safety of everyone who uses the Uber platform is fundamental and remains our number one priority,” the spokesperson said,adding the platform provided free insurance that covers accidents.
Burke also used the anecdote of a fruit picker who raided supermarket dumpsters to eat because she was being paid about $4 an hour. “These are all loopholes that need to be closed,” he said.