Aya Yasser and Rasha Ammar
08 January 2026
On the morning of September 24, 2023, Ahmed Tarek was riding his motorbike to work, wearing his orange uniform with its Talabat logo. Suddenly in front of him a black car appeared, with no licence plates, going at high speed. He swerved to avoid it, but the car hit him, and he was thrown several metres onto the tarmac. The car sped off.
For a few seconds time stood still. After he hit the ground hard, passers-by rushed to help. Blood was pouring from his left foot, which was completely shattered. Ahmed was taken to hospital where he had a total of 18 operations, costing him more than 800,000 Egyptian pounds (EGP) ($16,000). The surgeries did not end his suffering, though. Still, he was too disabled to either walk or work.
Even though the company had been making a monthly deduction for health insurance from his salary for five years, it refused to take responsibility for the accident, or cover the costs of his treatment. “The company paid me 50,000 EGP and I paid the rest,” says Tarek. “The first operation cost me 68,000 EGP (64,500 EGP after a reduction). But then I had 18 more operations, and since then neither the company nor the office where I work even asked how I’m faring.”
In addition to losing his physical abilities, Ahmed lost his livelihood, as the company forced him to quit: “I spoke to them so many times, but they just said ‘do what you want, we’ve got the money and the lawyers.’”
His family was forced to spend the rest of their savings, and his neighbours clubbed together to cover his medical bills. “My leg was completely crushed and they said it needed to be amputated, but my family and I refused. Everyone who lives around here came together to support me.”
His real shock came when he turned to the labor office to file a complaint, only to have the company deny responsibility, claiming he was never one of their employees.
This investigation reveals how delivery companies in Egypt mistreat their couriers by classing them as “independent workers” rather than employees. Doing so allows companies to evade responsibility toward their workers, namely in terms of social insurance and compensation in case of accidents. And it enables them to impose harsh working conditions without legal protection. This method of employment exploits legal loopholes and takes advantage of weak official oversight of company practices.
Talabat is one of the leading food delivery and e-commerce companies in the Middle East and North Africa, operating in Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Egypt, Jordan, and Iraq. The company leads the market in terms of the number of customers and partners, and in its geographical coverage too. It has over six million active customers, 65,000 partners, and partnerships with around 56,300 restaurants and 9,500 shops, covering more than 155 types of cuisines and products. In 2015, it was acquired by the German company Delivery Hero.
In 2013, there were some 14,000 registered couriers on the Talabat platform in Egypt. Currently, there are around 25,000 registered couriers in 25 cities. The company also operates 12 Talabat grocery stores, according to statements made by the company’s CEO, Hadeer Shalaby, on television in late 2024 .
Despite its strength in the market, the company has faced protests by its workers in Egypt. In April 2022, a number of couriers went on strike in protest against the company’s wage policy, following the weakening of the value of the Egyptian pounds against the US dollar. This prompted management to award temporary Ramadan bonuses of 250 Egyptian pounds (EGP) ($5) per week for every 45 hours worked, 400 EGP ($8) per week for every 60 hours, and 600 EGP pounds ($13) per week for every 80 hours worked.
A market survey we conducted for this investigation shows that Talabat is the largest employer in the sector, with 44 percent of the couriers covered in the survey, compared to 35 percent for Mrsool, six percent for Breadfast, four percent for Mashawir, and two percent for My Delivery. The remainder were spread across companies such as Bosta, Jumia Egypt, InstaShop, and Rabbit.
Ahmed’s case is not out of the ordinary for couriers, who face dangers as part of their daily routine. A survey on the rights of delivery workers in Egypt, with 130 participants, found that 63 percent had suffered a work-related injury or traffic accident while on the job. However, only two percent reported receiving compensation from their companies.Withholding compensation from drivers for work-related injuries accounted for 36 percent of mistreatment reported by couriers.
Rami Hassan sets off on his motorbike every morning on the streets of Cairo, trying to cope both with notifications on his app and traffic jams. He rushes up stairs to deliver orders and then back down to his bike to start a new journey. He keeps up this gruelling routine sometimes for 12 hours a day, earning no more than 28 EGP ($0.5) per delivery.
Rami began working for Talabat in February 2024, via an intermediary, after being forced to sign a 20,000-pound ($420) promissory note. He was not given an employment contract or fixed salary, but is paid on commission according to the number of orders he completes, and the distance he travels. According to a survey we conducted for this investigation, 80 percent of delivery workers in Egypt have not signed employment contracts with companies, and 77 percent are paid on a per-order basis. Only 17 percent receive a weekly salary, and six percent a salary each month.
Rami, like most of his colleagues, works without any legal protection or insurance, except for a health care card from Medical Group that offers discounts on some medical services in exchange for monthly “deductions” from his wages. This card does not compensate, however, for the lack of health insurance. Ninety-seven percent of the couriers who took part in the survey said their companies did not insure them with the National Authority for Social Insurance (NOSI), and only 12 percent of them had health insurance.
Rami recalls that the company deducted money from his wages after a customer complained and accused him of being overpaid, without any investigation or inquiry on the company’s part.Such punishments are not unusual, as other workers have said that companies often take deductions from couriers or give them poor appraisals if a customer complains, even if there is no evidence. An example is Haitham Mohammed, who works for Breadfast. He says he was physically and verbally assaulted by security guards at a residential complex in the Third Settlement in New Cairo in July 2024. After the customer filed a complaint, Mohammed says that the company punished him by deducting three days worth of wages (700 EGP – $15)without investigating the incident, even though there were CCTV cameras there. According to the survey results, unjustified wage deductions accounted for 54 percent of the most significant cases of abuse of staff, while 13 percent of them reported not being paid at all.
Rami worked previously for Breadfast in January 2024, on a salary of 4,000 EGP ($85). He found out his social insurance was registered on the basis of an income of only 1,700 EGP ($36). While undergoing treatment, he was forced to work on his days off and denied sick leave. This violates Article 131 of Egypt’s labor Law, which entitles workers to paid medical leave as determined by a competent medical professional under the Social Insurance Law. Rami’s experience echoes accounts from other workers who say they were compelled to work during rest days and threatened with wage deductions if they refused.
Rami also revealed that his supervisors – coordinators – would often force workers to buy and deliver personal items for them, such as food and cigarettes, at their own expense in return for giving them work orders.
When he raised the issue with management, he was pressured into resigning, fearing that the 200,000 EGP promissory note he had signed upon being hired would be used against him.According to our survey, 48 percent of workers have been forced to sign promissory notes, 18 percent were openly blackmailed, and 27 percent reported that these threats led them to forgo their rights.
Like Rami, Haitham complains of company favouritism in giving out work orders, with some couriers being preferred over others. He says that job insecurity has become institutionalized, with new drivers being hired and then rapidly dismissed. Our data indicates that 21.5 percent of workers surveyed have been victims of unfair dismissal.
In addition to testimony from couriers, we managed to obtain copies of contracts and official documents that they signed before starting work at Breadfast. These reveal the true nature of the “gig economy.” Drivers are treated as independent service providers rather than permanent employees. This deprives them of benefits guaranteed under labor laws, such as social and health insurance and holidays.
One of these contracts states that a wage of 18.41 EGP ($0.4) will be paid within the first five days of the following month, minus a three percent tax deduction, provided that the courier commits to: working full time for the company; using only their own bike; and accepting responsibility in the event of accidents.
The company bears only the cost of petrol used to deliver orders to customers, based on the number of complete trips. Contracts do not state that the company will bear the cost of maintenance or damage, or be responsible in case of accidents the courier may have.They stipulate that the company may terminate the contract immediately in the event of any violation or customer complaint, while the worker is required to give one day’s notice to resign. The contract also prohibits couriers from working for competing companies while it is in force, and for up to a year after it ends, and bars them from breaching company confidentiality for five years.
Breadfast is a food delivery start-up founded in 2017 by Mustafa Amin, Mohamed Habib, and Abdullah Nofal, with a capital of $26 million. It began by delivering baked goods before gradually expanding to offer grocery delivery services. As part of this expansion, the company launched Breadfast Now, a cloud-based supermarket that allows customers to purchase a range of local products.
We showed human rights lawyer Malek Adly, head of the Egyptian Centre for Economic and Social Rights, the documents and contracts that some delivery companies force their workers to sign, including those issued by Breadfast. Adly explained that these documents are not employment contracts in the legal sense. They are in fact service contracts that treat the worker as a “service provider”, rather than an employee, in an attempt to show the two parties are equal, while in fact depriving the worker of any labor rights. Adly describes them as “slavery labor contracts” that are not legally recognized, because they do not comply with labor law provisions on the minimum wage, occupational safety and health standards, work injuries, regulation of working hours, or termination of service.
He points out that the confidentiality agreement Breadfast forces on its workers, contains provisions that are illegal. Terminating a contract, for example, is the preserve of the judiciary, under Article 148 of Law No. 14 of 2025. He also emphasizes that forcing workers to sign promissory notes is a widespread form of coercion that falls outside any clear legal framework. Adly calls for legislative intervention to criminalize these practices, alongside urgent reforms to protect the rights of digital delivery workers and ensure effective oversight of companies.
Adly makes a distinction between those who work for companies and restaurants – some of whom have contracts and insurance – and those working through smart delivery apps, who have no legal protection and are often forced to buy uniforms and equipment at their own expense. Most of them do not work directly for the mother companies, he explains, but work for intermediary labor supply companies. This makes their legal status even more precarious, Adly argues, being one of the worst forms of employment, which he likens to “human trafficking,” because of the exploitation and lack of protection it entails.
Although the new labor Law No. 14 of 2025, covers workers on digital platforms, granting them rights equal to those of conventional workers – like social protection, a minimum wage and the right to organise a trade union – it only came into force in early September 2025. Article 99 stipulates that there must be a written or electronic employment contract, with the chance to prove the existence of a functioning relationship by any means, including electronically and in person. Nevertheless, there remains a wide gap between the legal texts and what happens in the real world, given weak oversight by the Ministry of Manpower, because of the small number of inspectors relative to the size of the labor market, according to Adly.
This legislative and regulatory vacuum is having a direct impact on workers. According to a survey we conducted for the investigation, couriers believe that the main reason companies abuse their rights is that employers are exploiting their need for work. Other factors are weak legal protection and the limited awareness by workers of their legal rights, which makes them more vulnerable to these abuses.
Some delivery companies use intermediary agencies that register couriers on their digital apps in exchange for a percentage of their wages. These earnings are normally transferred to the courier’s electronic wallet, without them signing any contract directly with the mother company or having any legal dealings with it. That way, companies are freed of any obligation towards these workers. In fact, the intermediary agencies require couriers to sign promissory notes ranging in value from 10,000 to 50,000 EGP ($209-$1,045), and they deduct the cost of uniforms, boots, and helmets from their wages. SSeveral workers have reported that recruitment agencies lure new couriers with false promises of high earnings, collecting commissions for each worker they funnel into the on-demand delivery system.
Most couriers in Egypt, like Ahmed, Rami, and Haitham, work without contracts or legal protection. Our survey shows that 45 percent of employment malpractice concerns denial of health and social insurance, while 78 percent of couriers complain of lack of legal protection, and 79 percent feel they have no financial or social security.
Workers are paid on a “batch” system that links their earnings to how quickly they make a delivery and to how customers rate them, which enables companies to make unjustified deductions. Mahmoud Yosri, a delivery driver, says he has no contract, is paid only per order, and has to bear the cost of any accident himself. Zainab Mohammed, who worked with Talabat between 2021 and 2022, was paid 12 EEGP ($0.25) per delivery without any insurance. Ahmed Gamal, who worked at Mrsool and then moved to Talabat, says he used to pay for cancelled orders out of his own pocket, only for his supervisors to make deductions later from his wages and send him threatening messages.
In July 2025, Mrsool workers held a strike to protest against cuts in wages, increases in the commission the company charged, rising to 100 percent in some cases, and a ‘credit’ system that forces couriers to pay for orders in cash and be reimbursed later. Mohamed Bakri said: “One guy told me to get him an order worth 1,500 Egyptian pounds ($31). I brought it, but then he said he didn’t want it, and Mrsool just said, ‘Well, it’s nothing to do with us.’”
There are no accurate official statistics on the number of delivery workers in Egypt. The Minister of labor reckons there are millions, but trade unionists think there are not more than 900,000, all of whom are working “irregularly”, with no insurance or protection.
Mrsool was founded in 2015 by Saudi nationals Ayman Al-Sand and Nayef Al-Samri. In a few years it became one of the most prominent delivery platforms in Egypt. In 2018, it had four million users and 150,000 couriers and a turnover of $270 million. The company controls about 28 percent of the delivery market in Egypt, with 1.4 million orders per day. It has an estimated 100,000 couriers and plans to increase that to one million, according to its general manager, Osama Harfoush.
This controversy over the mistreatment of delivery drivers is not limited to Egypt. In Iraq, for example, an investigative report published by ARIJ in September 2025 looked into the same problem there. Just one month later, the Iraqi government took action and adopted a series of reforms, guaranteeing the rights of this group of workers and cutting down on abuses. This shows the contrast between the action taken by countries that were quick to respond and what is happening in Egypt, where delivery workers remain outside any effective framework of protection.
Despite the detailed questions we asked Egypt’s Ministry of Labour about measures taken to protect delivery workers, and about what mechanisms there in place for checking up on companies and dealing with complaints, the ministry’s media advisor, Abdel Wahab Khader, simply referred us to the “Your Safety Matters to Us” campaign launched by the ministry in July 2025.
He explained that the campaign aims, in its initial phase, to provide protection for couriers on motorcycles and bikes or in cars, whether they work on apps or on their own. The campaign involves training and providing free protective equipment in cooperation with the private sector and civil society. It also includes an inspection and monitoring plan that will begin in the New Administrative Capital and then be rolled out to the other governorates, with a dedicated hotline and electronic service for receiving complaints and inquiries.
However, the ministry’s response gave no details about how delivery companies would be monitored, how many complaints had been filed, or what measures would be taken against those breaking the rules. Nor did it make clear if the ministry would impose any penalties or set legal obligations to guarantee workers’ rights.
We went back to the ministry spokesman seeking clarification on these questions, but we have so far received no response.
While his case against Talabat is pending in the Egyptian courts, Ahmed Tarek remains a prisoner in his room, leaning on crutches, contemplating his shattered leg, which can no longer support him, and overwhelmed with anxiety about what the future holds. Rami Hassan still rides his bike every day, twelve hours a day, through the streets of Cairo, from one area to another, under the constant pressure of company “deductions” and the risk of accidents. While Haitham Mohammed tries to find a legal way to regain his rights at Breadfast, Mohammed Bakri is forced to work as an office cleaner in the morning before starting his day as a Mrsool courier for wages that do not even cover his basic needs.
As each new order comes in, these drivers race against time along perilous roads, haunted by the threat of accidents and of having deductions taken from their earnings. It is a never-ending pursuit of an income that cannot protect them from poverty.
