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Gig Workers during the COVID-19 Crisis in France: Financial Precarity and Mental Well-Being

Author

Listed:
  • Bénédicte Apouey

    (PSE - Paris School of Economics - UP1 - Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne - ENS-PSL - École normale supérieure - Paris - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - ENPC - École des Ponts ParisTech - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement, PJSE - Paris Jourdan Sciences Economiques - UP1 - Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne - ENS-PSL - École normale supérieure - Paris - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - ENPC - École des Ponts ParisTech - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement)

  • Alexandra Roulet

    (INSEAD - Institut Européen d'administration des Affaires, CEPR - Center for Economic Policy Research)

  • Isabelle Solal

    (ESSEC Business School)

  • Mark Stabile

    (INSEAD - Institut Européen d'administration des Affaires, CEPR - Center for Economic Policy Research)

Abstract

We set out to explore how precarious workers, particularly those employed in the gig economy, balance financial uncertainty, health risks, and mental well-being. We surveyed and interviewed precarious workers in France during the COVID-19 crisis, in March and April 2020. We oversampled gig economy workers, in particular in driving and food delivery occupations (hereafter drivers and bikers), residing in metropolitan areas. These workers cannot rely on stable incomes and are excluded from the labor protections offered to employees, features which have been exacerbated by the crisis. We analyzed outcomes for precarious workers during the mandatory lockdown in France as an extreme case to better understand how financial precarity relates to health risks and mental well-being. Our analysis revealed that 3 weeks into the lockdown, 56% of our overall sample had stopped working and respondents had experienced a 28% income drop on average. Gig economy drivers reported a significant 20 percentage point larger income decrease than other workers in our sample. Bikers were significantly more likely to have continued working outside the home during the lockdown. Yet our quantitative analysis also revealed that stress and anxiety levels were not higher for these groups and that bikers in fact reported significantly lower stress levels during the lockdown. While this positive association between being a biker and mental health may be interpreted in different ways, our qualitative data led to a nuanced understanding of the effect of gig work on mental well-being in this population group.

Suggested Citation

  • Bénédicte Apouey & Alexandra Roulet & Isabelle Solal & Mark Stabile, 2020. "Gig Workers during the COVID-19 Crisis in France: Financial Precarity and Mental Well-Being," Post-Print halshs-02973630, HAL.
  • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:halshs-02973630
    DOI: 10.1007/s11524-020-00480-4
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Bénédicte Apouey & Mark Stabile, 2022. "The effects of Uber diffusion on the mental health of drivers," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(7), pages 1468-1490, July.
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    Cited by:

    1. Dimitri Ioannides & Szilvia Gyimóthy & Laura James, 2021. "From Liminal Labor to Decent Work: A Human-Centered Perspective on Sustainable Tourism Employment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-15, January.
    2. Tan, Karen Pei-Sze & Yang, Yang & Li, Xiang (Robert), 2022. "Catching a ride in the peer-to-peer economy: Tourists’ acceptance and use of ridesharing services before and during the COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 151(C), pages 504-518.
    3. Kelle HOWSON & Funda USTEK‐SPILDA & Alessio BERTOLINI & Richard HEEKS & Fabian FERRARI & Srujana KATTA & Matthew COLE & Pablo AGUERA RENESES & Nancy SALEM & David SUTCLIFFE & Shelly STEWARD & Mark GRA, 2022. "Stripping back the mask: Working conditions on digital labour platforms during the COVID‐19 pandemic," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 161(3), pages 413-440, September.
    4. Lotta K. Harju & Joonas Rokka & Maíra Magalhães Lopes & Massimo Airoldi & Karine Raïes, 2021. "Employee Well-Being Profiles During Covid-19 Lockdown : A Latent Profile Analysis of French and UK employees," Post-Print hal-04376054, HAL.
    5. Bénédicte Apouey & Mark Stabile, 2022. "The effects of Uber diffusion on the mental health of drivers," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(7), pages 1468-1490, July.
    6. Benjamin Semujanga & Xavier Parent-Rocheleau, 2024. "Time-Based Stress and Procedural Justice: Can Transparency Mitigate the Effects of Algorithmic Compensation in Gig Work?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(1), pages 1-16, January.
    7. James Duggan & Michelle O’Sullivan & Maeve O’Sullivan, 2023. "Essential or excluded? Union pressures and state responses to platform work in three liberal market economies," Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, , vol. 29(4), pages 491-505, November.
    8. Annie Irvine & Nikolas Rose, 2024. "How Does Precarious Employment Affect Mental Health? A Scoping Review and Thematic Synthesis of Qualitative Evidence from Western Economies," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 38(2), pages 418-441, April.
    9. Yuxun Peng & Yuqing Shao & Ziyun Li & Ruian Cai & Xiaochen Bo & Chen Qian & Qiao Chu & Jiang Chen & Jianwei Shi, 2022. "Status and Determinants of Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression among Food Delivery Drivers in Shanghai, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-14, October.
    10. Nurul Iman Abdul Jalil & Soon Aun Tan & Nur Shakila Ibharim & Anisah Zainab Musa & Siew Hui Ang & Wustari L. Mangundjaya, 2023. "The Relationship between Job Insecurity and Psychological Well-Being among Malaysian Precarious Workers: Work–Life Balance as a Mediator," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-14, February.
    11. Woo‐Yung KIM, 2023. "Do unions provide employment protection in times of economic crisis? A natural experiment of COVID‐19," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 162(4), pages 615-639, December.
    12. Louis Delamarre & Salma Tannous & Ines Lakbar & Sébastien Couarraze & Bruno Pereira & Marc Leone & Fouad Marhar & Julien S. Baker & Reza Bagheri & Mickael Berton & Hana Rabbouch & Marek Zak & Tomasz S, 2022. "The Evolution of Effort-Reward Imbalance in Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic in France—An Observational Study in More than 8000 Workers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(15), pages 1-13, July.

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