Too hot to work: Just Eat Takeaway.com makes its own delivery drivers stay home

Just Eat Takeaway.com is temporarily suspending deliveries this week due to the extreme heat. At least, this applies to the delivery drivers employed directly by the company, who can be recognized by their orange uniforms. In Belgium, deliveries will resume on Sunday; in the Netherlands, Thuisbezorgd is waiting to see what the weather forecast brings.

“It’s no longer safe to drive around”

“At temperatures of 35 degrees and higher, it’s no longer safe to drive around,” says Siska De Lombaerde, Country Director of Takeaway.com Belux. The decision follows the announcement of a code orange heat warning in Belgium and the Netherlands. Just Eat Takeaway.com says that, as an employer, it cannot guarantee safe working conditions at such temperatures.

“As an employer, it is our responsibility to ensure good working conditions for our delivery drivers. And we cannot guarantee that in this scorching heat. So we are suspending all activities until temperatures are bearable again. The delivery drivers will still be paid for these days,” says De Lombaerde.

Deliveries will still take place

However, deliveries can and will still take place: restaurants that handle their own deliveries can continue to make them. The decision only affects the company’s own delivery service. The website and app will also remain operational. Consumers can therefore still order meals from the restaurants on the platform. Takeout remains an option as well. According to De Lombaerde, ordering behavior is shifting due to the heat: “People are clearly ordering more refreshing dishes now, such as sushi, poké bowls, and salads.”

Starting Sunday, temperatures in Belgium are expected to drop again to around 27 degrees. At that point, the company plans to have its bicycle couriers resume deliveries. In the Netherlands, Thuisbezorgd is awaiting guidance from the KNMI: as soon as the orange alert is lifted, deliveries will resume as quickly as possible.