The Supreme Court has upheld the decisions made by the Amsterdam court of Appeal on December 21, 2021, in two cases involving Deliveroo. Firstly, the Supreme ruled that Deliveroo falls under the mandatory collective labor agreement (CAO) for the Professional Transport of Goods by Road and Mobile Crane Hire. Additionally, the Supreme Court confirmed that Deliveroo is obligated to join the industrial pension fund for Road Transport Professionals.
In the first case, the Court of Appeal determined that Deliveroo falls under the scope of the Professional Transport of Goods by Road and Mobile Crane Hire CAO, as delivering meals is considered ‘wholly or partially transporting goods, other than people, for payment by road’ as described within the CAO’s scope. According to the Court, the fact that bicycle couriers are a relatively new phenomenon does not change this.
In the second case, the Court of Appeal decided that Deliveroo’s main activity is the delivery of meals, which is regarded as ‘transporting goods for payment by road’ as per the mandatory decision of the industrial pension fund for Road Transport Professionals. The Court stated that whether the transportation occurs by car, scooter, or bicycle is irrelevant. The Supreme Court confirmed this and asserted that delivering meals by bicycle falls under this description, irrespective of the vehicle type.
Deliveroo argued that the mandatory decision would be invalid if their activities fell under it because the necessary representativeness of employers during its formation would have been absent. The Supreme Court ruled, however, that even if the required representativeness was lacking, this does not mean the decision does not apply to Deliveroo.
Consequently, the rulings of both the court and the Court of Appeal have become final. As a result of this, Deliveroo must retroactively apply the CAO regulations to all its employees from 2015 onwards. Additionally, Deliveroo is required to contribute pension premiums to the industrial pension fund.
