Nottingham East MP Nadia Whittome has donated £2,000 to IWGB union’s couriers branch in Nottingham. This is the third donation the Labour MP has announced this year as part of her “worker’s wage” pledge.

When Whittome was elected to Parliament in December last year, she pledged to only take home £35,000 of her MP’s salary – in line with the national average – and donate the rest to local causes. Previously she has made donations to the St Ann’s Advice Centre and sex workers’ charity POW Nottingham.

The IWGB is a union representing primarily precarious and migrant workers in the ‘gig economy’. In Nottingham, the IWGB Couriers and Logistics Branch has organised several strikes of Deliveroo riders, calling for pay rises and improvements in working conditions, and protesting changes to pay structure. Nadia Whittome has also spoken out in support of the IWGB’s #ClappedAndScrapped campaign against unfair dismissals of drivers working for apps such as Deliveroo and Uber. Recently she spoke at a #ClappedAndScrapped rally alongside fellow Labour MP Ian Byrne.

Nadia Whittome said:

It’s a pleasure to support Nottingham couriers who I’ve been working closely with since last year. While fighting for fair pay and basic workers’ rights, they have also shown impressive commitment to the wider community, from mobilising in support of youth climate strikers to delivering meals to rough sleepers in the city centre.

The pandemic has shown us that many of the people whose work is most essential to society are also some of the lowest paid and most precarious. The best way to thank our key workers for their contribution is by supporting their campaigns for decent wages, rights and dignity at work.

Greg Howard, Chair of IWGB Couriers and Logistics Branch branch, said:

Huge thanks from everyone at the IWGB to Nadia Whittome, not just for her generous donation to the Nottingham couriers but for being such a dedicated ally to precarious workers. She’s given invaluable support to our #ClappedAndScrapped campaign which has brought Nottingham riders together with couriers across the country to call out the ‘gig economy’ culture which ignores, undervalues and exploits these key workers. Essential work deserves essential rights and Nadia’s donation will go straight to fund the fight for them on the frontline.