---
title: "Casualties of Cola: Outsourcing, Exploitation and the New Reality Of Work"
description: "Inaugural Daily Maverick Chronicle feature investigates outsourcing and exploitation of South African owner-drivers by the world's biggest beverage companies. By DAILY MAVERICK CHRONICLE."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "Business Maverick"
author: "Daily Maverick Chronicle"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/dailymaverickchronicle/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2015-12-06-casualties-of-cola-outsourced/"
published: "2015-12-06T22:35:53"
updated: "2015-12-06T22:48:48"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 231
---

# Casualties of Cola: Outsourcing, Exploitation and the New Reality Of Work

> Inaugural Daily Maverick Chronicle feature investigates outsourcing and exploitation of South African owner-drivers by the world's biggest beverage companies. By DAILY MAVERICK CHRONICLE.

By Daily Maverick Chronicle · Published 7 December 2015, 00:35 SAST · Updated 7 December 2015, 00:48 SAST

## Content

> Beverage behemoth SABMiller and its subsidiary, Amalgamated Beverage Industries (ABI), one of the African continent's leading bottlers of Coca-Cola products, are being sued for over R6 billion in damages by 150 owner-drivers (ODs) whose contracts were axed by the company over the last five years.

> These ex-entrepreneurs, many of them former long-time employees of ABI, have accused the company of duping them into signing onerous contracts, squeezing their profits and unfairly terminating the relationship over a variety of unfounded allegations, in order to minimise its exposure to the risks associated with distribution and stringent labour regulations in South Africa.

> The investigation, *[Casualties of Cola](http://casualties-of-cola.com/),*which has been four months in the making and includes the testimonies of over 40 former ODs and their families, as well as dozens of industry experts and commentators, makes a compelling case for the assertion that this B-BEE-aligned owner-driver scheme is a modern day iteration of slavery that is eroding South Africa's black middle class. In this, the piece is a larger meditation on the future of work in South Africa.

> *[Casualties of Cola](http://casualties-of-cola.com/)*is presented by Daily Maverick Chronicle, an editorial partnership between the multiple award-winning South African news and opinion publication and its newly-formed production agency, Chronicle. It is written and produced by acclaimed writer Richard Poplak, along with Chronicle's Sumeya Gasa, Shaun Swingler and Diana Neille.

> [Read the full feature here](http://casualties-of-cola.com/).