Italian delivery riders strike over heat protections and wage losses

Delivery riders in Milan, Bologna, and Florence have called a strike for Wednesday, demanding that the protections being offered against extreme summer heat do not quietly become a form of wage theft. The dispute crystallizes a dilemma that is becoming harder to ignore: when authorities limit working hours to shield workers from dangerous temperatures, someone must absorb the financial loss — and right now, that someone is the rider.

Milan moved first among Italian cities, restricting deliveries during the hottest parts of the day through September. The measure was framed as a health safeguard, but riders and their unions quickly identified the gap: without compensation from the platforms that employ them, reduced hours simply mean reduced income. For workers already living close to the margin, a protective policy can feel indistinguishable from a pay cut.

The stakes extend well beyond Italy. Across Europe, an estimated 130 million workers are exposed to significant heat stress each year, and labor disputes tied to inadequate thermal protections are already emerging in Spain and France. The pattern suggests that what is unfolding in Italian cities is not an isolated grievance but an early, visible edge of a much larger reckoning between climate change and labor rights.

Italian union leaders are seeking more than sympathy — they want binding commitments that structurally ensure workers can step back from dangerous conditions without facing financial punishment. The labor ministry is expected to take up the question of social safety nets on Thursday, and the outcome of those talks will offer an early measure of whether institutions are prepared to meet this moment with the seriousness it demands.