RESEARCH
The Digital Hustle: Gig Worker Financial Lives Under Pressure, Indonesia Spotlight 2020
The Indonesia Spotlight 2020 of The Digital Hustle: Gig Worker Financial Lives Under Pressure examined how gig workers in the Indonesian informal economy – ridesharing drivers, online sellers, household services, and delivery workers – are coping with the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Indonesia Spotlight August 2020 report, which includes survey responses from 586 Indonesian gig workers, is the third edition of a series from Flourish called The Digital Hustle: Gig Worker Financial Lives Under Pressure. Key findings from the report include:
- Indonesia gig workers earning more than Rp 3 million per month (US$ 200) saw a sharp decline from 43% in March 2020 to only 5% in June/July 2020. Additionally, there was a huge surge in gig workers earning less than Rp 1 million ($70) from 8% in March 2020 to a whopping 55% in June/July 2020.
- 74% of respondents are very concerned about COVID-19. Gig workers are more concerned about the impact on their livelihoods (52%) than their health (14%).
- Jobs that require in-person interaction were more severely impacted. 71% of home health providers (such as those offering mobile massage), 65% of ridesharing drivers and 55% of delivery drivers lost income. Online sellers and other household workers such as housecleaners were less affected.
- No earnings gap found between genders. The report showed that men and women were affected equally by the COVID-19 economic downturn in Indonesia. In other countries surveyed as part of The Digital Hustle series, women were disproportionately impacted.
- Gig workers in big cities are the most severely affected. 63% of respondents lost income compared to 49% in smaller cities.
- Indonesian gig workers are living on the edge. Close to 60% of respondents said that if they lost their main source of income, they could not cover household expenses for a month without borrowing money.
We partnered with research firm 60 Decibels and gig worker startup Sampingan to conduct the online survey of 586 Indonesian gig workers in June 2020.