The silent revolution of Nairobi’s streets—the hum of electric motorbikes replacing the roar of combustion engines—has hit a noisy legal speed bump. A group of electric motorbike riders has moved to the Employment and Labour Relations Court, suing American tech giant Uber B.V. and its local partner, Greenwheel Africa, in a high-stakes standoff over unpaid bonuses and opaque salary deductions.

For months, the partnership between Uber and Greenwheel was touted as the gold standard for Kenya’s e-mobility transition: riders would get company-provided electric bikes, a fixed salary, and performance incentives, shielding them from the volatility of the traditional boda boda hustle. But according to court documents filed this week, that stability has evaporated, replaced by what riders describe as algorithmic wage theft.

The ‘Zero Ride’ Mystery

At the heart of the lawsuit is a contentious billing anomaly known among riders as the “Zero Ride.” Riders allege that the Uber app frequently credits their accounts for trips that never happened, only to immediately deduct an equivalent amount as a “commission.”

While this might sound like a harmless accounting error, riders claim it wreaks havoc on their cumulative earnings. “It is a phantom transaction,” said one rider involved in the suit, who requested anonymity due to fear of victimization. “The system shows money coming in and going out, but at the end of the month, our actual performance bonuses are slashed based on these ghost figures. We are being taxed on air.”

The petitioners argue that these deductions, combined with delayed bonus payments, have left many taking home significantly less than the promised KES 15,000 to KES 20,000 monthly retainer.

Piercing the Corporate Veil

The legal strategy employed by the riders is as significant as their grievances. By naming Uber B.V.—the Dutch-registered parent company—rather than just the local subsidiary, the riders are attempting to pierce the corporate veil that often shields multinational tech firms from local liability.

This follows a precedent set by Justice Francis Tuiyott in previous rulings, which established that Uber’s local and international entities are inextricably linked. The riders contend that:

• Uber B.V. controls the digital platform and the payment algorithms.
• Greenwheel Africa manages the physical fleet and the employment contracts.
• Both entities are jointly liable for the discrepancies in remuneration.

“You cannot separate the app from the bike,” argued the riders' legal representative. “One controls the work, the other controls the worker. Both are responsible for the pay.”

The Greenwheel Defense

Greenwheel Africa, which has deployed hundreds of electric bikes across Nairobi, has previously defended its model as a revolutionary step for rider welfare. Unlike the chaotic informal sector, Greenwheel offers maintenance, battery swaps, and a structured wage.

In response to earlier protests on Riverside Drive, company representatives suggested the disputes arose from a “misunderstanding” of the new tiered bonus structure. They maintained that the “Zero Ride” entries were system logs that did not negatively impact net pay—a claim the riders vehemently reject in their affidavit.

A Test for Kenya’s E-Mobility Push

This lawsuit lands at a critical moment. With the government pushing to have 200,000 electric motorbikes on the road, the Uber-Greenwheel model is being watched closely by investors and policymakers. If the “salary-plus-bonus” model collapses under legal scrutiny, it could deter future investments in the sector.

For the rider on the street, however, it is not about macroeconomics; it is about survival. “We embraced the electric bike because we were told it was the future,” the rider added. “But if the future means working for an algorithm that eats your money, we would rather go back to the old noisy bikes where we kept what we earned.”