Portugal’s Uber Drivers and Couriers Can Secure Minimum Wage and Insurance

Uber Portugal has put into effect its two-year accord with the UGT-affiliated SINDEL union, a move that effectively installs a minimum-wage safety net and accident insurance for the country’s gig-economy couriers and drivers.

Why This Matters

• Income floor now active: Drivers who enrol are guaranteed pay no lower than the €920 national minimum for the hours they are actually on trips.

• Insurance bundled in: A new policy covers accident, illness, parental leave and death—benefits rarely included in gig work.

• Choose your representation: Two membership tiers—€1.5 a month or 0.75% of platform earnings—open the door to legal help and training discounts.

• Policy experiment: Lisbon regulators are watching; the deal could influence how Portugal transposes the upcoming EU directive on platform labour.

How the Deal Works in Practice

The accord, signed last November and formally launched on 29 January, offers two voluntary enrolment paths:

Low-cost plan (€1.5/month): Grants institutional representation and the core benefits negotiated with Uber.

Full member plan (0.75% of earnings, minimum €6.9): Adds legal support after 1 year, plus preferential rates on courses and insurance products SINDEL already offers to industrial-sector members.

Whichever option drivers pick, they must stay for at least six months. Uber’s servers cross-check IDs with SINDEL’s database, unlocking the protections directly in the driver or courier app.

The Money Question

For many workers the headline is the income guarantee. Uber pledges to top up pay so that, during active service time, total earnings hit at least the monthly minimum wage. Critics note the pledge applies only when the driver is on a trip, not waiting for it. Still, back-of-the-envelope math from labour economists at the Portugal Catholic University suggests the top-up could add €60–€110 a month for drivers operating in low-demand districts.

Insurance Package at a Glance

• 70% of the IAS (Indexante dos Apoios Sociais) per day if a temporary injury stops work.

• One full year of minimum-wage income in cases of permanent disability or accidental death.

• Coverage extends to parental leave, an item rarely present in gig-economy policies.

The premium is funded jointly: Uber shoulders the base price, while member contributions finance any upgrades chosen under the full plan.

Points of Friction and Criticism

Associations outside the UGT family—namely the ANM-TVDE and APTAD—argue the pact is a “marketing exercise” that keeps workers legally self-employed and therefore outside Portugal’s more protective Labour Code. They say the minimum-wage clause is hard to audit and could require 70–80 working hours a week to hit the threshold in slower markets. Further, they question SINDEL’s authority to bargain for a sector it has not historically represented.

What This Means for Residents

For the average rider ordering an Uber or Uber Eats meal, prices are unlikely to spike overnight; the company maintains it can absorb the extra cost through marginal fare tweaks and service-fee restructuring. Still, if the model spreads to rival platforms, expect slightly higher delivery fees in 2026. More broadly, the deal tests whether Portugal can raise standards in the platform economy without outright reclassifying workers as employees—an approach that, if successful, might preserve the convenience consumers enjoy while lifting earnings at the bottom.

Looking Ahead: The EU Directive Looming

Portugal has until 2 December 2026 to transpose the EU’s new directive on platform work, which shifts the burden of proof toward recognising an employment contract when control indicators are present. The Portugal Ministry of Labour is already drafting amendments to the Código do Trabalho that could go well beyond the Uber-SINDEL accord, potentially granting automatic employee status to workers who receive more than 80% of their income from one platform. Employers fear an abrupt cost jump of about €867 per worker per year, given 2026’s higher minimum wage and related social-security contributions.

Policy analysts see the Uber deal as a “sandbox” in which government can measure real-world data before finalising the national law. If the insurance and wage top-ups reduce welfare-state spending on injuries and low wages, regulators may lean toward codifying similar requirements across all platforms rather than mandating wholesale reclassification.

Enrollment Checklist for Drivers & Couriers

Download the latest Uber Driver or Uber Eats app update.

In the new “SINDEL Membership” tab, choose Low-Cost or Full Member.

Provide fiscal number (NIF) and IBAN; the union fee is auto-debited monthly.

Receive confirmation email—coverage starts the following Monday.

Bottom Line for Investors

Platform operators eyeing Portugal now face a de facto wage floor and mandatory insurance costs. While margins tighten, analysts at BPI Research believe the clear regulatory pathway could reduce litigation risk and stabilise the sector, encouraging medium-term investment in fleet electrification and provincial expansion.