E-cos step up efforts to protect associates, strengthen training

Tech-driven companies like Uber and Amazon are ramping up efforts, including running awareness drives to educate associates and partners on safety and good health practices, as these businesses gradually resume work as lockdown is eased in various parts of the country.

In a bid to curb the spread of the deadly coronavirus, the government had announced a nationwide lockdown from March 25. While some relaxations were brought in after 40 days, metros and major cities continue to remain off-limits for delivery of services for many firms.

Amazon India said on Thursday that it has added close to 100 changes in its on-ground operations to maintain social distancing in its buildings and ensure safe deliveries for customers. It has adjusted its practices within all its operations sites including fulfilment centres (warehouses), sortation centres and delivery stations through new formats of communications, process changes, new training methods and several policy changes, it said in a statement.

"Several operational processes have been changed for the associates on the ground. This includes changes in the way items are picked, packed and bagged to ensure a minimum of two-metres distance following social distancing guidelines," it added.

Amazon India said only one person is allowed to load/unload products at a time and the arrival time of drivers and delivery associates have also been staggered to avoid crowding at the site.

At the time of delivery of packages, associates now make "contactless deliveries" and place the order at customer doorstep to avoid any physical contact.

In the first 40 days of the lockdown, e-commerce companies were allowed to deliver only essential items like grocery, medicines and healthcare products.

In the ongoing Lockdown 3.0 that ends May 17, these companies can deliver all products in green and orange zones (no and very few cases of coronavirus infections) but can ship only essential items in red zones.

Metros and many large cities - which are hubs for tech-powered services like e-commerce and ride-hailing - fall under red zones. Taxis and cab aggregators are also not allowed to operate in this zone under the current guidelines.

Uber said it has launched a comprehensive set of measures, ramped up the distribution of millions of PPE kits to drivers and introduced safety awareness education video courses for them.

"Uber's new in-app safety feature will notify drivers to replenish their PPE supplies after they have completed a predetermined number of trips. The notification will provide a list of convenient pickup points and generate a QR code once they select the preferred location," Uber said in a statement.

An Uber volunteer will scan the QR code at the designated pick up location and hand over PPE supplies to drivers, the statement added.

Uber said it has sourced more than 3 million three-ply face masks, 1.2 million shower caps, 2 lakh bottles of disinfectants and sanitisers each for free distribution to all driver-partners across India.

In case drivers choose to source the required PPE themselves, Uber said it will reimburse costs. Distribution of PPE kits has been ongoing in Green and Orange Zones since the relaxation of the lockdown, it added.

Interestingly, Uber has also made it mandatory for driver-partners to complete ride-sharing specific educational videos, highlighting standard operating procedures for vehicle disinfection and other COVID-19 related safety protocols.

Drivers can only take trips, once they have watched these videos to ensure they're following the safety protocols, it emphasised.

"Our new distribution technology ensures that drivers can get these safety supplies over a long period of time...As authorities lift the lockdown and millions prepare to get back to work, we will redouble our efforts to set industry standards for safety," Pavan Vaish, Head of Central Operations at Uber India and South Asia, said.