Instacart workers strike amid COVID-19 fears, call company response a 'sick joke'

Hours before the protest, Instacart addressed some safety concerns. But, workers say, it wasn't enough.

Instacart workers are holding a strike across the US on Monday to demand more protections from the company. The move comes as a growing number of grocery delivery workers for Instacart say they're getting sick with COVID-19 symptoms, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. They say the company hasn't done enough to safeguard them against the illness.

"We are staging an emergency walk off because we had no other choice -- working conditions had become dire," said Sarah Clarke, an organizer for the nonprofit Gig Workers Collective, which helped plan Monday's strike. "Instacart had spent the past three weeks ignoring Instacart workers' pleas for basic protection during this pandemic."

Gig workers, like Instacart shoppers and Uber and Lyft drivers, have been on the front lines during the coronavirus outbreak. They shop and deliver food to those who've been quarantined and often take sick people to hospitals. Several US states have recognized their importance, deeming their labor "essential," meaning they can continue to work as the virus spreads.

Because gig workers are classified as independent contractors, rather than employees, they don't qualify for company health insurance, sick leave, family leave, disability or workers compensation. Instacart, and other gig economy companies, have offered workers two weeks sick leave if they get COVID-19 or are mandated to quarantine.

"Our team has had an unwavering commitment to prioritize the health and safety of the entire Instacart community," Nilam Ganenthiran, Instacart's president, said in a statement on Sunday. "We've been evaluating the COVID-19 crisis minute by minute to provide real-time support for Instacart shoppers and customers throughout North America."

But many workers say that pay is hard to come by. An Instacart shopper near Portland, Oregon, told CNET last week that after coming down with COVID-19 symptoms and submitting a doctor's letter to the company, the shopper still couldn't get sick pay from Instacart.

Hundreds of gig workers across the country have said they fear working because they're vulnerable to the coronavirus, which as of Monday has infected more than 770,000 people and killed nearly 37,000 worldwide. Other workers have tested positive for COVID-19 and have been put under quarantine.