During the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, most of us have come to appreciate the valuable and dangerous work done by the riders and drivers for home-delivery services such as Uber and Deliveroo.

But many of these workers are still treated as second-class citizens when it comes to wages and conditions.

Because the delivery companies treat them as contractors rather than employees, they are not guaranteed an hourly wage, and they are not covered by standard rules on workers’ compensation.

However, since at least 2020, when four home delivery drivers died on Sydney’s roads in just a few months, unions have campaigned to bring delivery drivers in from the cold.

It has been slow going. Companies argued that gig economy workers are different from workers in other industries because they can choose when they want to work, and normal industrial relations rules should not apply.

However, this month the drivers’ campaign seems to have turned a corner as Uber has made a major concession on the safety net protection to its drivers.

Uber’s general manager of rides for Australia and New Zealand, Don Taylor, has expressed support for a basic minimum hourly wage, some form of injury insurance and a complaints process which should apply uniformly across the sector under a pact with the Transport Workers Union. Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi told the Herald this week that the deal would “focus on flexibility and control over when and where (drivers) work, earning a fair wage, and access to benefits and protections.”

The announcement by Uber, the industry’s 1000 pound gorilla which has about 32,000 drivers in NSW, will encourage change in other companies such as Deliveroo and Menulog, which have also been moving in a similar direction. Rival DoorDash has already signed a deal with the Transport Workers Union.

Uber is to be congratulated on accepting its responsibility towards its drivers, who are some of the most vulnerable workers in Australia.

But it is likely that its decision to bury the hatchet has been motivated by the change of federal government. Workplace Relations Minister Tony Burke has indicated that he is pressing ahead with the ALP’s campaign pledge to give the Fair Work Commission power to set minimum pay and conditions for gig economy workers.