Uber Eats and Deliveroo lift minimum hourly income for delivery drivers in France from 11.75 to 19 euros

What happened

On 10 July 2026, Uber Eats and Deliveroo, the two largest food delivery platforms in France and both members of the Association des plateformes d'indépendants, signed an amendment with two unions – Union-Indépendants and the Fédération nationale des auto-entrepreneurs (FNAE) – overseen by the sector's labour regulator ARPE. The amendment raises the statutory minimum gross hourly income for self-employed delivery drivers from 11.75 euros to 19 euros, effective 1 September 2026. The deal, confirmed by ARPE to Agence France-Presse, updates a 2023 framework that originally set a minimum earnings floor for independent couriers.

Background: declining incomes

The ARPE had flagged a worrying trend in 2025. Drawing on data from the platforms, its report showed that average gross hourly income fell 22.4 percent at Uber Eats, 21.5 percent at Stuart, and 15 percent at Deliveroo between 2021 and 2024. The regulator attributed the erosion mainly to an increase in uncompensated waiting time between deliveries: couriers spent a growing share of their hours idle, dragging down the effective hourly rate. The data prompted unions to demand a revision of the 2023 minimum, which had set the initial floor but proved insufficient as algorithmic routing changed the structure of the workday.

Health risks under algorithmic management

In March 2026, the French food and environmental safety agency ANSES published a health impact study on platform delivery work. The study, originally commissioned by the Confédération générale du travail (CGT) in 2021, found that delivery riders face heightened risks of traffic accidents, falls, and psychological stress. A principal factor, according to the report, is the pervasive use of artificial intelligence to 'optimise their economic performance'. Algorithms continuously track rider metrics, sanction any delay, and impose unrelenting time pressure, which the agency linked directly to an increased likelihood of collisions and falls. The report underscored the connection between algorithmic management and workplace safety, reinforcing calls for stronger income protections. Together with the ARPE income data, the ANSES findings intensified pressure on the platforms to raise the minimum.

Regulatory and union response

ARPE director general Joël Blondel, in a communiqué released on Friday, said the signing

marks an important step in the gradual construction of collective guarantees adapted to the working conditions of independent platform workers.

Both unions, Union-Indépendants and FNAE, had pressed for a substantial increase after the 2025 earnings data exposed the fragility of gig-economy incomes. The July amendment, while not altering the legal classification of drivers as independent contractors, materially improves their guaranteed minimum compensation.

What changes from September

The amendment lifts the minimum gross hourly income from 11.75 euros to 19 euros, an increase of roughly 62 percent. The new rate will apply from 1 September 2026 to all delivery orders handled by the signatory platforms. The previous rate, set by the 2023 agreement, had lagged behind the reality of platform work, as documented by both the ARPE and ANSES reports.

The income declines that preceded the raise are summarised in the following comparison.