Following our Cranking Up Road Safety campaign in 2021, Purpose expanded on this work to address the remaining perception that it’s dangerous to be a delivery courier.
To engage with the delivery driver community and bring the conversation of road safety to them, we met them in spaces they were already occupying with informal and accessible language that referenced their everyday lives.
We launched a campaign event aiming to prioritise the value of caring for the delivery profession, which often remains overlooked, by ensuring drivers have access to healthcare and safety services. The event, acting as a Pitstop, created an environment in which delivery drivers could ensure they are in the best shape for being on the road day after day.
Challenge
The perception of couriers throughout social networks remains that “it’s a dangerous profession to be a delivery courier.”
With this context, we aimed to expand on our 2021 campaign of delivering traffic safety tips to drivers, to appreciate the work and livelihoods of those who are on the road day after day – focusing on addressing:
- The need to humanize delivery couriers
- The relationship between the invisibility of the profession and the lack of security it faces.
Approach
In order to shed light on this issue of invisibility of the delivery profession and introduce discussions on humanization and security, we aimed to engage directly with our target audience and highlight the root causes behind lack of road safety.
We conducted a campaign seeking to give delivery couriers the recognition that they deserve, and introduce important discussions about their safety and livelihoods. In order to mobilize our audience, we needed to identify exactly how to bring these conversations to them- how could we engage with the community and call them to action? Our answer was- through empathetic messaging and informal and accessible language, with many references relating directly to the work of delivery couriers.
The campaign launched with an event, called “PitsTop Grau na Segurança,” which offered a space focused on care, appreciation, health and well-being for delivery couriers. The event also featured music, food, and guest speakers.
The environment fostered pride amongst the delivery profession and encouraged couriers to prioritize their safety by taking care of themselves- their physical health, their mental health, and even their work tools. Services provided at the event included healthcare (glycemia testing, blood pressure testing, and ophthalmology consultations) and bike maintenance (motorcycle servicing, helmets cleaning, and tyres calibration).
During the Pitstop, a total of 2,272 people were assisted in all available services. The average time spent at the event was approximately 40 minutes.
The supply of food was a highlight at the event – many couriers spoke out on the importance of having saved money on that day’s meal, while also praising the quality of food and service.
At the end of the event, we were informed of a delivery courier who found out they had diabetes while at the event. Considering that most couriers cannot afford medical insurance, a diagnosis like this could have taken much longer in the public health network.
We also used Fundación MAPFRE’s social networks to share content focused on raising awareness on the importance and the need for delivery drivers to take care not only of their work equipment, but their mental health.
Learning about the importance of music in the couriers community, we partnered with DJ Zemê who played what bikers typically listen to- a repertoire which ranged from rap to pagode. DJ Zemê and her music played a part in provoking immediate connections, and keeping the energy high by constantly engaging in dialogue with attendees throughout the event.
In addition, we also had Gringo Motoka, founder of AMABR (Association of Self-Employed and Delivery Apps Motorcycle Couriers of Brazil), and Rogério, from Pedale-se project, as speakers at the event.
Nurturing ideas was also a focus of the launch event- Gringo Motoka and Rogério spoke on classism and racism, both of which are issues delivery couriers face in their day-to-day lives. The food stations were empty only during the speaking portion, demonstrating the willingness and need of delivery couriers to share their experiences.
Roughly 700,000 people were impacted by the campaign, which was announced organically in several press outlets, such as Mobilidade Estadão, Seguro Total, CQCS, Revista Cobertura and ABC da Comunicação.
Over 2,000 people were present at all available services at the launch event. We offered health and well-being care to 900+ people, including: glycemia testing, blood pressure testing, massages, and ophthalmology consultations. Over 300 people were offered bike check-ups, with motorcycle servicing, helmets cleaning, and tyres calibration to ensure drivers’ safety while they’re on the road.
“I ride over 50 km a day and some people don’t appreciate it. The event was cool, though! It was the first time I had a massage, I never had the opportunity before, it was very good. Lunch was the best I’ve ever had in my life! Really” – Sidney “Spider” de Souza Araújo, aged 27, from Francisco Morato/SP
for Equity & Evidence