Government wants 'measures' to protect delivery workers from heatwave

French Labor Minister Jean-Pierre Farandou is calling on delivery platforms to take concrete steps to protect their workers from soaring temperatures. Speaking on France Inter, Farandou stated he convened platform representatives and unions on Thursday to convey the urgency of the situation.

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I told them: you really need to take measures.

"I told them: you really need to take measures," he said. While a 2025 decree enhances employer obligations for protecting salaried employees during heatwaves, many delivery workers operate as independent contractors, falling outside these protections. France is currently experiencing a heatwave, with further high temperatures expected.

Farandou wants "concrete decisions... to better protect these delivery workers" to be on the agenda for a joint commission meeting on Friday. He suggested measures such as minimizing deliveries during the hottest hours, limiting delivery distances on hot asphalt, and ensuring reasonable load weights. Providing ways for workers to cool down is also crucial.

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It's not worth doing 15 km on hot asphalt.

"They need to be protected; they are an essential link in this economy," the minister insisted. He made it clear that if social dialogue within the sector does not yield adequate protective measures, the government is ready to implement its own.

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They need to be protected; they are an essential link in this economy.