Poor working conditions, little income and no rights. We often hear these negative aspects about platform labour, such as meal delivery. But platform labour also has benefits, especially for migrants, though we hear very little about them. Researcher Roy Huijsmans delved into it.
Scientist Roy Huijsmans noticed something in 2017. Some of his students delivered meals alongside their studies: 'That students work alongside their studies is, of course, not strange. But at the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS), most students are from outside the EU. Cycling must already be quite a challenge for them. Let alone maneuvering through a city you don't know very well, with a smartphone and a bike. That drew me into this research: what is the relationship between migration and platform work?'
Difficult to find work
Huijsmans noticed that the media mostly spoke about labour law in relation to platform work: 'Quite understandable, of course. You have far fewer rights as a self-employed meal delivery driver. But for this particular group, people with a migration background, it is a bit more nuanced.'
It's not easy for students and other people from outside the EU to get a job in the Netherlands. You need a work permit, you run into language and cultural barriers and you can only work 16 hours a week. 'It is very difficult to find a job in the Netherlands as a migrant from outside the EU', says Huijsmans. 'Employers hardly put any effort into training an employee when it comes to server jobs, so it saves them a lot of time if they just hire someone else. Or you end up working in the kitchen without any contract or papers.'
Fast track to work at Uber Eats
As a self-employed meal deliverer with Uber Eats (and previously Deliveroo as well), you can get started right away. You need to register at the Chamber of Commerce as self-employed, download the Uber Eats app and you can get started. 'For people from outside the EU, this is a very big advantage. You can start immediately and earn money. Even if the conditions are not ideal. There is also no limit on the number of hours you can work. You have no employment relationship under the law, so you can work as much as you want.'
'You can see from these details that it is not entirely by chance that students and some graduates end up doing this work. Not because they want to very badly, but because it is good enough for now. And perhaps there is the hope that this is temporary. A stepping stone to something along the lines of thier study', Huijsmans says.
How do meal deliverers work?
If you are employed by Thuisbezorgd, you don't work there as a self-employed person. At Uber Eats and Deliveroo you do not have an employment contract but a partner agreement. You work for yourself there. 'With Thuisbezorgd you have less freedom. You have to work certain weekend hours and you indicate your working days a few weeks in advance. With Uber Eats you log in and you can immediately start working whenever you want. When I started at Deliveroo in 2019 I also saw very clearly that fewer migrants were working at Thuisbezorgd', says Roy.
Delivering meals yourself
Roy Huijsmans is an ethnographer. That means he doesn't do research from behind his computer. He goes out and about. So in 2019, Roy started to deliver meals for Deliveroo. He did so from 2019 until Deliveroo stopped delivering in the Netherlands back in 2022.
'I have to admit honestly that I liked the work', Roy says. 'I didn't expect that. But you have to keep the following in mind: my work as a scientist is never truly finished. When I delivered meals, I finished one delivery in about 20 minutes. Then I got a pop-up on my phone. I arrived at a restaurant I'd never been to and walk in through the back door. As an ethnographer, I find that tremendously interesting.'
What does it get you?
People with permanent jobs still get paid when they chat with colleagues or while getting coffee. Delivery drivers only get paid when they actually deliver food. As a result, their earnings vary a lot. Some hours you earn more than other hours.
Still, Huijsmans was surprised how much the delivery workers earn. 'A day of 100 euros was a good day. If you multiply that by 6 days and times 4 weeks, you come up with a nice amount. But that's only if you work hard and take it seriously. You'd have to get on your bike before lunch, recharge your bike between 3 and 4 o'clock and go back to deliver full time again during dinner until late in the evening', Roy explains.
As a delivery driver, you have to cycle through the rain, through the snow and in the evenings when others are doing fun things. Again, that does fit the picture of migration. 'Migrants leave friends and family behind with the hope of achieving certain goals. As long as delivery work seems to help them getting closer to these goals, they will swallow these extra efforts and sacrifices, but it turns sour when, despite all this, the migration procedure fails to take off.'
Don't forget to tip!
The scientist says to always tip! According to his research, tipping really makes a difference to delivery drivers. 'Let's say you get paid 3 euros for one delivery. Then an one euro tip is really of great value. Let alone if you tip 2 euros. I can confirm that a tip via the app directly goes to the delivery driver. And there's no tax on it.'
'It's good to put yourself in someone else's shoes. Who are these delivery people? And why do they do what they do?'
dr. Roy Huijsmans
Scientist at the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS)
The most important thing in this research is to keep complexity in mind. Labour laws are important, but they did not apply to some groups of migrants. 'Imagine if the government tackles this and change labour laws. Then migrants might not be able to do this work. And they might go to work somewhere undocumented', Huijsmans says.
'It's good to put yourself in someone else's shoes. Who are these delivery people? And why do they do what they do? I stay away from right or wrong. That is for the reader to judge. I just want to highlight this side of the story.'
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