Why do people become delivery app drivers/riders?
The questions of who becomes a delivery app deliverer and why people become delivery workers are intrinsically linked, and will thus be discussed jointly in this section. This analysis is based on studies in French high-frequency delivery areas (Paris, Lille).
To begin, an overview of the demographic of delivery workers. Delivery workers are usually younger than 25, and male. This statistic may vary in other countries, as in France most delivery workers go out on bikes. Women might feel less safe going out on a bike, and older people may feel less comfortable with the physical aspect. Comparisons of macro trends between countries’ delivery apps will be discussed later in this blog. Unsurprisingly, because of this regional focus, most of the delivery workers said that they enjoy bike riding. Many are students, and those who are not most likely do not have a diploma in post-secondary education. For many of the deliverers, but especially students, this was their first foray into the job market. A final trend shown in the demographic of delivery workers was that many were not born in France, or had family of north/west African origin.
The first reason many people become delivery workers is for the freedom and flexibility. Some delivery apps like Foodora have deliverers book shifts when they, but many like UberEats simply allow deliverers to log in whenever they are free. The draw of flexibility is especially enticing for students, who often have busy and uneven schedules. This demographic does not consider delivering a long-term career, and often have other small jobs. Many students also came from stable financial backgrounds, so did not have to worry about making a certain amount of money for their budget from the apps. This idea of flexibility may be more of a myth than reality for those more concerned with making enough money rather than just extra, which will also be further discussed in this blog.
The next reason that people choose to work on delivery apps is because of the social value that comes with having the job. One delivery worker in Lille, Naïm explained that not only could he make more money from delivery work than at “McDo” (McDonalds), but also that working at McDo was a “job like any other, not one where you are going to feel valued.” Jan, another Lilloise thinks that bike delivery is socially valued for its “accessibility…payment [and] enhancement of physical aptitudes.” As said above, this is often their first job, and for students, social appearance can be very important. Thus, when choosing between different jobs without prior experience required, students would rather pick the one that does not seem banal or devaluing.
Finally, while some food delivery apps are more selective, hiring discrimination is not as big of an issue as in the traditional job market. This fact explains why there are so many deliverers who are racialized or immigrants. The study done in Lebas’ paper showing this to be true was done before 2018, when UberEats stopped allowing foreign students to deliver for them. This seems to have shifted the demographic between apps, but not of this sector of the labour market overall. Algerian students in particular face difficulties, as it is more complicated to hire them due to the Evian accords.
To begin, an overview of the demographic of delivery workers. Delivery workers are usually younger than 25, and male. This statistic may vary in other countries, as in France most delivery workers go out on bikes. Women might feel less safe going out on a bike, and older people may feel less comfortable with the physical aspect. Comparisons of macro trends between countries’ delivery apps will be discussed later in this blog. Unsurprisingly, because of this regional focus, most of the delivery workers said that they enjoy bike riding. Many are students, and those who are not most likely do not have a diploma in post-secondary education. For many of the deliverers, but especially students, this was their first foray into the job market. A final trend shown in the demographic of delivery workers was that many were not born in France, or had family of north/west African origin.
The first reason many people become delivery workers is for the freedom and flexibility. Some delivery apps like Foodora have deliverers book shifts when they, but many like UberEats simply allow deliverers to log in whenever they are free. The draw of flexibility is especially enticing for students, who often have busy and uneven schedules. This demographic does not consider delivering a long-term career, and often have other small jobs. Many students also came from stable financial backgrounds, so did not have to worry about making a certain amount of money for their budget from the apps. This idea of flexibility may be more of a myth than reality for those more concerned with making enough money rather than just extra, which will also be further discussed in this blog.
The next reason that people choose to work on delivery apps is because of the social value that comes with having the job. One delivery worker in Lille, Naïm explained that not only could he make more money from delivery work than at “McDo” (McDonalds), but also that working at McDo was a “job like any other, not one where you are going to feel valued.” Jan, another Lilloise thinks that bike delivery is socially valued for its “accessibility…payment [and] enhancement of physical aptitudes.” As said above, this is often their first job, and for students, social appearance can be very important. Thus, when choosing between different jobs without prior experience required, students would rather pick the one that does not seem banal or devaluing.
Finally, while some food delivery apps are more selective, hiring discrimination is not as big of an issue as in the traditional job market. This fact explains why there are so many deliverers who are racialized or immigrants. The study done in Lebas’ paper showing this to be true was done before 2018, when UberEats stopped allowing foreign students to deliver for them. This seems to have shifted the demographic between apps, but not of this sector of the labour market overall. Algerian students in particular face difficulties, as it is more complicated to hire them due to the Evian accords.
The video below (from 0:45-1:15) is one testimony of an American ubereats driver explaining her choice of driving for uber eats, fitting in the group of those looking for flexibility.
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