07-02-2019

Hermes’ self-employed couriers now have the option to take holiday pay and have guaranteed earnings following a deal between the consumer delivery company and the GMB Union.

Hermes couriers can now choose to become ‘self-employed plus’, which provides a number of benefits such as holiday pay (pro-rata up to 28 days), and individually negotiated pay rates that allow couriers to earn at least £8.55 per hour over the year.

Tim Roache, GMB general secretary, said: "This is an opt-in model and will not affect those couriers who wish to retain their current form of self-employed status and earn premium rates, as has been the case for the past 20 years.

“Hermes is leading the way, looking after the people who work for you on the ground day in, day out, is not only good for business but the right thing to do.

“As a result of our ground-breaking agreement, couriers will have a real voice in their workplace as well as the right to holiday pay and guaranteed pay, something GMB Union has long been campaigning for on behalf of our members.

“Full credit to Hermes. They’re showing that the gig economy doesn’t have to be an exploitative economy and we look forward to working with them through this ground-breaking agreement."

Martijn de Lange, Hermes UK CEO, said: “This new option allows couriers to retain the flexibility of self-employment we know is so important to them and gives them the certainty of guaranteed levels of earning, the security of holiday pay and a strong voice.

"We’re proud to be leading the way with this pioneering development which we hope will encourage other companies to reflect on the employment models they use.

"We have listened to our couriers and are wholeheartedly committed to offering innovative ways of working to meet peoples’ differing needs.”


"I have used The Learn Centre on a number of occasions and have found it provides a great platform to gain the knowledge required to carry out my job. I started off with the Payroll Technician course and this in-depth learning gave me a great foundation of payroll knowledge to build upon and give me the confidence to progress up the career ladder, well worth it and would certainly recommend, no matter what level you are at there will be a course/qualification that can help you."

Ayman Zagloul
HR Analyst at Queen's University Belfast

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