Lieferando, one of Germany’s leading food delivery services and a subsidiary of Dutch giant Just Eat Takeaway, has announced plans to lay off up to 2,000 drivers nationwide starting next year, many of them in Hamburg. This significant workforce reduction is part of a strategic restructuring aimed at increasing collaboration with local third-party delivery companies.
The restructuring will see Lieferando reduce its own fleet size by around 20%, passing more delivery orders to "locally agile" third-party providers. According to company officials, Lieferando will maintain direct delivery operations in areas with especially high demand but will rely on third-party firms in other regions to optimize efficiency. "These companies have been delivering for other providers for some time, creating synergies that Lieferando intends to leverage," the company said.
The outsourcing strategy, already piloted in some Berlin districts with subcontractors, is expected to expand further. “This is pretty much the most important and critical component of the whole story: the criteria of the fleet partners we want to work with,” explained Neubauer, a company spokesperson. A strict selection process is underway to ensure that subcontracted drivers receive permanent employment status and fair wages.
The layoffs have sparked strong criticism from the Food, Beverages and Catering Union (NGG). Mark Baumeister, head of NGG’s Hospitality Department, urged Lieferando to reconsider the cuts and "live up to its responsibility to employees." Baumeister warned that the company’s move could undermine occupational safety and called on politicians not to remain passive in the face of these job losses.
Lieferando confirmed that affected drivers will be supported with a social plan designed to ease the transition. Despite the changes, most drivers are expected to remain permanently employed by Lieferando’s subsidiary Takeaway Express, with only around 5% of deliveries outsourced.
Lieferando Marktplatz Gesellschaft manages the company’s operations in Germany. Historically, drivers were almost exclusively permanent employees through Takeaway Express. The company plans to continue this employment model for the majority of its workforce, even as it expands third-party collaborations to improve local responsiveness and delivery efficiency.
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