By Cyrus Farivar -
NBC News
Just before Christmas last year, Willy Solis, a 42-year-old construction worker turned delivery driver, received an order to deliver a $ 100 bottle of brandy to an apartment in Denton, Texas.
When he arrived,
he found a muscular man, whose name not only did not match the identification he showed
, but also was not the one that appeared in the order.
Confused, Solis called the phone support number for Instacart, the company he works for.
[They confirm the death of the Venezuelan taxi driver who had been missing for days in Georgia]
Solís said that infuriated the customer and the three men who accompanied him, who ordered him to deliver the brandy.
Although he had qualms about it, Solis, under the instructions of the Instacart supervisor who was still on the other end of the phone, gave them the bottle.
The delivery man - who has worked for several order delivery companies including Door Dash, Shipt and Gruhub - drove away in his 2018 Nissan Sentra, before the situation got worse.
It was not the first time that he felt insecure.
For example, he also delivered an order to an apartment in Haltom City, a place
on the outskirts of Fort Worth where an Uber Eats driver was killed last January
.
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Solis explains that since then he has stopped working after 9 pm and has considered carrying a gun.
Although he fears that if he violates delivery company rules not to carry firearms, he could risk losing his job.
"I'm very scared every time I go out,"
says Solis, who makes between $ 800 and $ 1,000 gross per week.
"I don't want to lose my life for a $ 100 bottle of brandy or a fast food order," he adds.
This delivery man is one of the 15 workers of the so-called
gig economy
or
commission economy
who agreed to speak with our sister network NBC News and admitted that they fear for their safety because violence against them has soared during the coronavirus pandemic. .
Police departments in several major cities, including Minneapolis and Washington DC, confirmed that
robberies and car thefts increased during the pandemic,
especially against drivers and delivery men.
Willy Solis, a 42-year-old food delivery boy.Nitashia Johnson / NBC News
Some of them say that despite the best efforts by companies, they decided to change their work hours, avoid certain areas, and even bring self-defense tools or weapons, such as wasp spray, maces, tasers, and firearms. .
[Food delivery people in New York demand better working conditions]
"As the danger increases, that pushes me more and more towards the possibility of doing it,"
Solis says of the idea of carrying a gun.
The problem particularly affects minority people who work in lower-paying jobs, according to Veena Dubal, a professor at the University of California Hastings College of the Law who has extensively researched the taxi industry and the gig economy.
The issue has become widespread enough that major tech companies have tried to address it.
Uber recently instituted security measures to protect drivers
, including more verification requirements for people setting up accounts with gift cards or other anonymous payment systems.
DoorDash spokesperson Campbell Matthews explained in an email that the company is "very concerned about reports of an increase in crime" and intends to add an "emergency assistance button to the Dasher app to help to connect the Dashers [the delivery men who work for this company] with the emergency services. "
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In a statement, Grubhub spokesman Grant Klinzman echoed Matthews' comments: As he stated, driver safety is "of the utmost importance" to the company, which is "ready to support police investigations ... while take steps to address the unacceptable increase in vehicle thefts. "
"Lyft spokeswoman Ashley Adams said the company considers safety" critical "and that the company" works closely with law enforcement to help keep drivers safe. "
Instacart expressed similar concerns but said it had not "seen an increase in car thefts or assaults on delivery men."
"We take the safety and security of the entire Instacart community very seriously," Natalia Montalvo, a company spokeswoman, said by email.
"Couriers have many resources available to ensure their safety and protection."
Crimes on the rise in various cities
The attacks on drivers, which began last year, may be associated with a broader trend of violent crime growth in major cities, according to research conducted in November by the Police Executive Research Forum.
[Delivery man gets kicked and beaten for refusing to deliver pizza in New York]
Chicago police, for example,
recorded 424 vehicle robberies between January and March, more than double the 198 that occurred at the same time last year
.
In San Diego, car robberies increased between 2019 and 2020 from 44 to 97.
In Minneapolis, the episodes of this type in the first three months of 2020 were 97, more than double than in the same period of the previous year, when there were 39. And in Washington, car robberies quadrupled in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period last year.
That growth has also occurred in places like Cincinnati, where there were 38 vehicle robberies from January 1 to March 20 in the "CUF" neighborhood near the city's university.
Emily Szink, a police spokeswoman, said
"a lot of those cars were running and they
belonged
to delivery men
.
"
However,
the phenomenon is not universal
.
Sacramento, California Police Departments;
Phoenix, Arizona, Lansing, Michigan and Dallas, Texas say they haven't seen such increases.
It is not clear why some cities are experiencing this type of crime more than others.
Kiwibot, the delivery robot developed by young Latinos during the pandemic
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Even before this trend occurred,
the employment of driver or delivery man was considered one of the most dangerous jobs in the United States
, generally due to traffic accidents, according to an analysis last year by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Just last month, there were several tragic events that affected this sector of workers.
In New York,
Francisco Villalva Vitinio
, a
DoorDash
delivery worker,
was killed after he refused to hand over his electric bicycle
, which he needed to work, to suspected thieves.
In Washington, Mohammad Anwar, a 66-year-old Uber Eats driver, was killed by two teenagers who investigators say used a stun gun on him.
Days earlier, in Chicago, Uber driver Javier Ramos was shot in the head and died.
Police said the suspect in the murder is a passenger the victim picked up in the middle of the morning.
Kidnapping of children
On February 6, Jeffrey Fang, 39, who works as a DoorDash driver in San Francisco, left his silver Honda Odyssey minivan running while making a delivery, leaving his 4-year-old daughter and 2-year-old son inside. They speak only Mandarin.
When he returned, he found a stranger sitting in the driver's seat.
Jeffrey Fang, host of Door Dash in San Francisco, California.Nina Riggio / NBC News
Fang said he pulled the man out of the car and chased him to snatch the cell phone he had stolen from him.
A short distance away, he lost sight of him.
Upon returning, he discovered that his minivan had been stolen with his children inside.
His children and the car were recovered a few hours later, unharmed.
"There are many things that people should know,"
says Fang, speaking of his work,
"it is not simple and sometimes it is dangerous
.
"
Small towns in the country are not immune to this.
In Rapid City, South Dakota, a 20-year-old DoorDash driver named Danielle, whose last name has been withheld because she fears retaliation from the company, says she feels insecure.
Danielle and her 2-year-old son, who accompanies her when she works as a DoorDash delivery person.Courtesy of Danielle
He claims that last month, when he was making a delivery with his 2-year-old son in the back of the car, five men surrounded them.
As he sped away, the subjects "tried to open the doors" of their car and "slam the windows."
The incident shocked her and she is now thinking about buying a gun
, which she is not legally allowed until her next birthday.
"I would feel much more secure taking my son with me if I was armed. In a time of need, I could use it and defend myself and my son," she explains.
Killed with a bullet in the head
In the early morning hours of March 23, Javier Ramos, 46, an Uber driver, was found shot in the head in the Lawndale section of Chicago, less than eight miles north of Midway Airport.
Police rushed him to a hospital, but he was pronounced dead just over four hours later.
[He was an Olympic medalist and now works as a food delivery boy to get ahead]
Lenny Sánchez, a veteran Chicago-based rideshare driver and labor organizer, tweeted the next day that Ramos had "tried to fight his attackers."
Ramos appeared to have been presumed dead,
after being hit by his own car
, apparently after a fight.
Since the beginning of the year, Sánchez and the
Independent Drivers Guild
have warned online and at in-person rallies about car thefts from delivery
drivers
in Chicago.
He said many drivers he has spoken to are scared and have changed how, where and when they work.
Some couriers are considering stricter measures.
"Many of the drivers are arming themselves,"
says Sánchez.
Vigil for Javier Ramos on April 9, Uber driver killed in Chicago, Illinois Chris Sweda / Zuma Press
While Sánchez applauds Uber's new measures to increase driver safety, he explains that his group is seeking additional action.
He's concerned that Lyft drivers in Chicago and elsewhere will face new threats.
And take as an example
the recent murder of a Lyft driver in St. Louis
.
"We know it will not be perfect, but we would like to see more and we would like Lyft to do more things. We have seen how criminals have moved to Lyft," adds Sánchez
Lyft did not respond directly to Sánchez's complaint.
Adams, the company spokesman, said by email that the company was "working to proactively identify" the accounts that we "determine are high risk."
[An 89-year-old pizza delivery boy receives $ 20,000 in tips from his fans on TikTok]
"In doing so, we observed a variety of account attributes, including the use of anonymous payment methods, which are most often linked to fraudulent accounts," the spokesperson wrote.
"The actions we take include the temporary and permanent deactivation of accounts, as well as requiring additional validation before being able to request a trip," he explained.
Hortencia Ramos, Ramos' cousin, said her family was devastated by her death
, particularly her 9-year-old daughter.
She describes Ramos as an "entrepreneur who always sought to be an example for her daughter," a practicing Christian, and someone who had a daily exercise routine.
His family is very disappointed in the way Uber has handled his cousin's death.
Hortencia Ramos says that no one from the company had even come close to offer their condolences and much more substantive.
"We are deeply saddened by this news. Our thoughts are with Javier's loved ones and we have reached out to the family to offer our support," Uber spokeswoman Jodi Kawada Page said in a statement.
Efforts to implement the law
Police departments have stepped up their efforts.
Chicago police expanded a task force to combat vehicle theft with various state and federal agencies.
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Since the beginning of the year, Chicago police have released 30 press releases describing the allegations against those suspected of having robbed a vehicle, including those believed to specifically target delivery men and drivers.
Similarly, the Washington Metropolitan Police Department also reported a steady increase in car thefts.
In 2019, there were 142;
last year they rose to 345. There were 47 arrests related to vehicle thefts in the first three months of this year, compared to just two during the first quarter of last year.
The police have distributed brochures
warning of the dangers of leaving vehicles running while making deliveries
.
"In recent months, we have worked to partner with delivery companies to get the word out to their drivers," police spokeswoman Kristen Metzger responded by email.
Early efforts by police departments appear to be resulting in change.
Last month, Cincinnati police even posted electronic signs to remind drivers to "Lock the car and take the key," among other safety messages.
[A court extends the deadline for Uber and Lyft to convert their drivers into employees with benefits]
"Vehicle thefts from delivery drivers who left their car running have started to trend downward, which means our message is working," said Szink, the police spokesman.
The consequences
Workers who have been victims often need time before they feel safe again.
Back in San Francisco, Fang has been taking a break from work.
After the horrific kidnapping of his children, supporters helped him raise more than $ 100,000 through GoFundMe, and DoorDash donated several thousand dollars to his family directly.
Jeffrey Fang in the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Francisco, California, in front of his stolen minivan with his children inside.Nina Riggio / NBC News
Still, Fang continues to fear going back to work.
During his time as an Uber driver, he says, guns were pointed at him multiple times.
Today, he carries a
taser-
style stun gun
in his car.
"Before the
taser
, I had a knife in the car, but it was stolen," he
says.
"Especially after the incident on February 6 and the wave of anti-Asian violence, I am looking to get a firearm," he adds.
[Hate crimes against the Asian community on the rise in the United States]
When passenger travel sold out due to the coronavirus pandemic, Fang switched to food delivery, believing he would make more money and be safer.
"I felt it was okay to take the children, although I knew it was a risk, but I did not have childcare and I felt that the risk had been minimized," he says, explaining that he had tried to stay in a safe neighborhood.
His car and children were seized in Pacific Heights, one of the wealthiest areas of San Francisco.
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Fang says he would like those responsible for DoorDash and other companies to
consider the needs of working parents
, particularly those who feel the need to drive during peak dinner hours.
"If they're paying them a six-figure salary and they give them ergonomic furniture, break rooms and all that, if you ask me, how about creating a childcare service for dinner hours, like 4 to 10 p.m. ? "asks Fang. "So the driver can carry them? For a $ 1 billion company, that shouldn't be too expensive," he adds.