Wolt couriers will protest in Prague’s Wenceslas Square today over pay changes

Couriers for Wolt are unhappy with changes in their pay structure and will stage a protest in Prague’s Wenceslas Square today at 2:30 p.m. Later, protestors plan to march to Wolt headquarters in Holešovice.

Last week, following negotiations with couriers, the company announced that it would increase their minimum payment for an order by 10 to 20 percent depending on the region they work in. The protest organizers said that they are still not satisfied and have launched a petition calling for a lower limit to payments and other guarantees.

Josef Středula, the president of the Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions (ČMKOS), will support their protest, reports Ceské Noviny.

Wolt cooperates with approximately 7,000 couriers in Czechia. At the end of January, the company changed its method of remuneration. Couriers can now see via the Wolt mobile application how much money they will receive for completing an order in advance, and their remuneration is calculated according to the length of the route.

Organizers of the latest protest reported that couriers' earnings for deliveries dropped by roughly 20 percent due to the change.

Wolt couriers previously protested the changes to the payment policies in Wenceslas Square on Feb. 1

The company attributed the decreased earnings to a large number of people joining the system at the time and said the whole situation is a misunderstanding.

According to the company's management, the pay to couriers has already reached the same level as before the changes to the system, and their earnings should reach CZK 250 to CZK 300 per hour.

Couriers for delivery companies usually work as so-called partners, i.e. as self-employed persons who have to pay, for example, social and health insurance or vehicle maintenance costs themselves.

Wolt operates directly in 15 Czech cities. In addition to Prague, it is active in Brno, Ostrava, Pilsen, and Hradec Králové. Delivery companies Dáme jídlo and Bolt Food also operate in Czechia.