'My Frantic Life as a Cab-Dodging, Tip-Chasing Food App Deliveryman' diff viewer (1/2)

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My Frantic Life as a Cab-Dodging, Tip-Chasing Food App Deliveryman	My Frantic Life as a Cab-Dodging, Tip-Chasing Food App Deliveryman
2019-07-22 16:04:10 UTC	2019-07-22 16:36:10 UTC (32 minutes later)
I had just started my lunch shift when the phone pinged: Uber Eats, pickup at Cocina del Sur on West 38th Street in Manhattan, five blocks away. Great! I pedaled down West 40th into congealing crosstown traffic.	I had just started my lunch shift when the phone pinged: Uber Eats, pickup at Cocina del Sur on West 38th Street in Manhattan, five blocks away. Great! I pedaled down West 40th into congealing crosstown traffic.
Seconds later my phone ponged — different sound. Postmates, another delivery app: Pick up two orders at Shake Shack on Broadway and 36th?	Seconds later my phone ponged — different sound. Postmates, another delivery app: Pick up two orders at Shake Shack on Broadway and 36th?
I had to decide: Take on three orders at once and risk falling behind? Stick with Uber Eats, which was running a $10 bonus for doing six deliveries by 1:30, or try for a Postmates bonus?	I had to decide: Take on three orders at once and risk falling behind? Stick with Uber Eats, which was running a $10 bonus for doing six deliveries by 1:30, or try for a Postmates bonus?
Information was limited. The Uber Eats app doesn’t tell you where the delivery is going until you pick it up. I could not know what the Postmates job would pay.	Information was limited. The Uber Eats app doesn’t tell you where the delivery is going until you pick it up. I could not know what the Postmates job would pay.
The Postmates clock ticked down — you have seconds to accept or decline an order. I was threading my way around lurching honking trucks and oblivious texting pedestrians and watching for cops and looking down at the phone mounted on my handlebars and calculating delivery times.	The Postmates clock ticked down — you have seconds to accept or decline an order. I was threading my way around lurching honking trucks and oblivious texting pedestrians and watching for cops and looking down at the phone mounted on my handlebars and calculating delivery times.
I hit “Accept.”	I hit “Accept.”
The riders, once you’re tuned in to them, are everywhere, gliding by stoically, usually on electric bikes, wearing their precious cargo on their backs: the silent swarm of tens of thousands of workers for apps like Seamless and GrubHub and Uber Eats and Caviar and DoorDash and Postmates, crisscrossing the city to gratify New Yorkers’ insatiable need for burgers and pad thai and chicken tikka masala delivered in minutes.	The riders, once you’re tuned in to them, are everywhere, gliding by stoically, usually on electric bikes, wearing their precious cargo on their backs: the silent swarm of tens of thousands of workers for apps like Seamless and GrubHub and Uber Eats and Caviar and DoorDash and Postmates, crisscrossing the city to gratify New Yorkers’ insatiable need for burgers and pad thai and chicken tikka masala delivered in minutes.
For a few days this spring, I was one of them. Not a good one, but a deliveryman nevertheless. I learned up close how the high-tech era of on-demand everything is transforming some of the lowest-tech, lowest-status, low-wage occupations — creating both new opportunities and new forms of exploitation.	For a few days this spring, I was one of them. Not a good one, but a deliveryman nevertheless. I learned up close how the high-tech era of on-demand everything is transforming some of the lowest-tech, lowest-status, low-wage occupations — creating both new opportunities and new forms of exploitation.
The riders are the street-level manifestation of an overturned industry, as restaurants are forced to become e-commerce businesses, outsourcing delivery to the apps who outsource it to a fleet of freelancers.	The riders are the street-level manifestation of an overturned industry, as restaurants are forced to become e-commerce businesses, outsourcing delivery to the apps who outsource it to a fleet of freelancers.
Mindless as the job may seem, it is often like a game of real-life speed chess played across the treacherous grid of the city, as riders juggle orders from competing apps and scramble for elusive bonuses.	Mindless as the job may seem, it is often like a game of real-life speed chess played across the treacherous grid of the city, as riders juggle orders from competing apps and scramble for elusive bonuses.
And there are risks. Nearly a third of delivery cyclists missed work because of on-the-job injuries last year, one survey found, and at least four delivery riders or bike messengers have been killed in crashes with cars this year. Riders on electric bikes face fines and confiscation, though that may change.	And there are risks. Nearly a third of delivery cyclists missed work because of on-the-job injuries last year, one survey found, and at least four delivery riders or bike messengers have been killed in crashes with cars this year. Riders on electric bikes face fines and confiscation, though that may change.
Maria Figueroa, director of labor and policy research for the Cornell University Worker Institute in Manhattan, called the food couriers “the most vulnerable workers in digital labor.”	Maria Figueroa, director of labor and policy research for the Cornell University Worker Institute in Manhattan, called the food couriers “the most vulnerable workers in digital labor.”
“People think digital economy or the future of work, we’re all going to be these hipsters sitting by their computers or driving these luxury cars,” she said. “That’s not the case with these guys.”	“People think digital economy or the future of work, we’re all going to be these hipsters sitting by their computers or driving these luxury cars,” she said. “That’s not the case with these guys.”
The riders have much in common with their overworked gig-economy cousins who drive for Uber and Lyft. But while ride-hail drivers successfully lobbied the city for a $17 minimum wage, most delivery-app couriers are not guaranteed a cent.	The riders have much in common with their overworked gig-economy cousins who drive for Uber and Lyft. But while ride-hail drivers successfully lobbied the city for a $17 minimum wage, most delivery-app couriers are not guaranteed a cent.
Even their tips have a way of vanishing: One app subtracts the amount the customer tips from the amount it pays the courier — effectively pocketing the tip.	Even their tips have a way of vanishing: One app subtracts the amount the customer tips from the amount it pays the courier — effectively pocketing the tip.
“The whole thing is like gambling,” said Werner Zhanay, 23, who delivers for Postmates and Caviar. “You have to be at a spot. You have to hope that there are orders there and then — do you stay at that spot?”	“The whole thing is like gambling,” said Werner Zhanay, 23, who delivers for Postmates and Caviar. “You have to be at a spot. You have to hope that there are orders there and then — do you stay at that spot?”
Delivering restaurant food has always been a hard, thankless job. With the apps, it is becoming more flexible and better paying — but in some ways less stable.	Delivering restaurant food has always been a hard, thankless job. With the apps, it is becoming more flexible and better paying — but in some ways less stable.
This, said Niels van Doorn, a ~~Dutch~~ ~~academic~~ who studied app riders in New York last year, “is what happens with an already precarious work force — what happens to an already invisibilized work force — when these platforms come to town.” (His Platform Labor research project is also studying the impact of delivery platforms in Amsterdam and Berlin.)	This, said Niels van Doorn, an assistant professor at the University of Amsterdam who studied app riders in New York last year, “is what happens with an already precarious work force — what happens to an already invisibilized work force — when these platforms come to town.” (His Platform Labor research project is also studying the impact of delivery platforms in Amsterdam and Berlin.)
My own 27 hours on a borrowed electric bike, alternately hellbent and ping-starved as I navigated chaotic streets and clattering restaurant kitchens and sleek apartment towers, were an immersion in the paradoxes and perils of a job in which making more than minimum wage requires the physical daring of a bullfighter and the cognitive reflexes of a day trader. (I have neither.)	My own 27 hours on a borrowed electric bike, alternately hellbent and ping-starved as I navigated chaotic streets and clattering restaurant kitchens and sleek apartment towers, were an immersion in the paradoxes and perils of a job in which making more than minimum wage requires the physical daring of a bullfighter and the cognitive reflexes of a day trader. (I have neither.)
I tasted the thrill of a decent tip and the agony of accepting a blind order that took me 40 blocks uptown to deliver two bagels. And I learned what can happen if you pay attention to the traffic for a whole minute or fail to hear your phone over the sirens and jackhammers: Miss one ping and there goes your Uber Eats Quest bonus.	I tasted the thrill of a decent tip and the agony of accepting a blind order that took me 40 blocks uptown to deliver two bagels. And I learned what can happen if you pay attention to the traffic for a whole minute or fail to hear your phone over the sirens and jackhammers: Miss one ping and there goes your Uber Eats Quest bonus.
My brief delivery career began in a concrete-floored office in industrial East Williamsburg. There were eight of us in plastic chairs, onboarding for DoorDash, currently the country’s leading food-delivery app. A man named Michael in a red DoorDash hoodie put up a map of a city showing red zones, hot spots and bonus zones.	My brief delivery career began in a concrete-floored office in industrial East Williamsburg. There were eight of us in plastic chairs, onboarding for DoorDash, currently the country’s leading food-delivery app. A man named Michael in a red DoorDash hoodie put up a map of a city showing red zones, hot spots and bonus zones.
“This map is always changing, always changing, always changing, it never stops changing,” Michael said.	“This map is always changing, always changing, always changing, it never stops changing,” Michael said.
In a few minutes, he was done: “Good luck, welcome to DoorDash, and if you make a lot of money, bring me some.”	In a few minutes, he was done: “Good luck, welcome to DoorDash, and if you make a lot of money, bring me some.”
People filed in for the next orientation — they were held every hour, making the place feel like a gold-rush town. Jobs for everyone!	People filed in for the next orientation — they were held every hour, making the place feel like a gold-rush town. Jobs for everyone!
At the dawn of the food-app era, back in 2016 or so, companies awash in venture capital paid fat wages with hourly guarantees and some riders made $2,000 a week.	At the dawn of the food-app era, back in 2016 or so, companies awash in venture capital paid fat wages with hourly guarantees and some riders made $2,000 a week.
“With Postmates you’d average $10 a job,” said Rodney Chadwick, a courier since 2016. “They’d have a Blitz and the Blitz would be like $15 a job, sometimes $20.”	“With Postmates you’d average $10 a job,” said Rodney Chadwick, a courier since 2016. “They’d have a Blitz and the Blitz would be like $15 a job, sometimes $20.”
As more riders signed up, supply met demand and the apps’ generosity evaporated. By 2017, Mr. Chadwick said, Postmates paid $4 or $5 a job. Riders usually do two or three orders an hour.	As more riders signed up, supply met demand and the apps’ generosity evaporated. By 2017, Mr. Chadwick said, Postmates paid $4 or $5 a job. Riders usually do two or three orders an hour.
The riders I talked to average hourly wages in the midteens with tips, though I met a couple of Jedi Masters who cleared over $20. My rookie earnings added up to just under $10 an hour — $5 below the city’s minimum wage. (I’m donating them to The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund, which supports social-service nonprofits in the city.)	The riders I talked to average hourly wages in the midteens with tips, though I met a couple of Jedi Masters who cleared over $20. My rookie earnings added up to just under $10 an hour — $5 below the city’s minimum wage. (I’m donating them to The New York Times Neediest Cases Fund, which supports social-service nonprofits in the city.)
Postmates says its couriers in New York City average $18.50 an hour. But it counts only the time when a courier is out on an order as part of that hour. The long stretches I spent staring at my silent phone like a jilted boyfriend, waiting for it to ping? Not part of my workday, according to Postmates.	Postmates says its couriers in New York City average $18.50 an hour. But it counts only the time when a courier is out on an order as part of that hour. The long stretches I spent staring at my silent phone like a jilted boyfriend, waiting for it to ping? Not part of my workday, according to Postmates.
The apps roll out ever-changing and often confusing menus of bonuses and incentives borrowed from the video-game and slot-machine industries, engineered to convince riders that they may yet win as long as they keep playing. But with so many riders chasing the same prizes, they often fall short.	The apps roll out ever-changing and often confusing menus of bonuses and incentives borrowed from the video-game and slot-machine industries, engineered to convince riders that they may yet win as long as they keep playing. But with so many riders chasing the same prizes, they often fall short.
Also, the apps keep ratcheting down base pay so that even when a rider earns a bonus, “You’re basically paying the bonus out of your own pocket,” Professor van Doorn said.	Also, the apps keep ratcheting down base pay so that even when a rider earns a bonus, “You’re basically paying the bonus out of your own pocket,” Professor van Doorn said.
In May, Postmates got rid of its guaranteed minimum of $4 per order. A company official said that the change was intended to discourage riders from rejecting longer trips, and that it had not affected workers’ earnings. But on a Facebook group for Postmates couriers in New York, the move was greeted with outrage. One courier wrote that she made $5.05 for doing two deliveries from 96th Street to 145th Street in Manhattan. “I’m done with PM,” she wrote.	In May, Postmates got rid of its guaranteed minimum of $4 per order. A company official said that the change was intended to discourage riders from rejecting longer trips, and that it had not affected workers’ earnings. But on a Facebook group for Postmates couriers in New York, the move was greeted with outrage. One courier wrote that she made $5.05 for doing two deliveries from 96th Street to 145th Street in Manhattan. “I’m done with PM,” she wrote.
Professor van Doorn interviewed dozens of riders and found that about three-quarters were riding for multiple apps, often simultaneously, to boost their earnings.	Professor van Doorn interviewed dozens of riders and found that about three-quarters were riding for multiple apps, often simultaneously, to boost their earnings.

Couriers who ride for the apps are mostly distinct from those who work directly for a restaurant. The latter — a whole other army of tens of thousands — are more likely to be undocumented, and though they’re entitled to at least $11.25 an hour plus tips, most are paid only a fraction of that.	Couriers who ride for the apps are mostly distinct from those who work directly for a restaurant. The latter — a whole other army of tens of thousands — are more likely to be undocumented, and though they’re entitled to at least $11.25 an hour plus tips, most are paid only a fraction of that.
It is no surprise, then, that many app riders are escapees from the grind of restaurant work.	It is no surprise, then, that many app riders are escapees from the grind of restaurant work.
“I would never go back to delivering for restaurants,” said Mengba Lee, 58, a Chinese immigrant who makes about $14 an hour riding for Caviar and Postmates.	“I would never go back to delivering for restaurants,” said Mengba Lee, 58, a Chinese immigrant who makes about $14 an hour riding for Caviar and Postmates.
Bahadir Rozi, a 29-year-old from Uzbekistan, uses the downtime between lunch and dinner to study acting and write — impossible if he were still pulling 12-hour restaurant shifts. “The best thing about this job is freedom,” he said.	Bahadir Rozi, a 29-year-old from Uzbekistan, uses the downtime between lunch and dinner to study acting and write — impossible if he were still pulling 12-hour restaurant shifts. “The best thing about this job is freedom,” he said.