Bay Area DoorDash drivers face waitlist amid gig economy shift
Oversupply of delivery app drivers leads to waitlists at one company
One Bay Area woman was surprised when she tried to return to the gig worker world and become a delivery app driver. She says she signed up to join one service and was told she was being put on a waitlist for her area. KTVU contacted the company and spoke with the UC Berkeley Labor Center about the impact of driver supply on wages.
OAKLAND, Calif. - Catherine Mojica of Fremont said she earned good money as a full-time rideshare driver years ago and when she found herself in need of some extra cash, she decided to sign up to be a delivery app driver.
"I started thinking about doing DoorDash to make some extra money. I'm a single mom with four kids," Mojica said.
When she signed up, though, she said she was surprised to get a message saying she was being put on a waitlist.
"It says, 'Thank you for your interest in DoorDash. We've hit our capacity of Dashers in your area due to popularity, so we're not accepting applications at the moment,'" Mojica said.
Featured
DoorDash launches drone delivery pilot program in US
Residents living in Christiansburg, Virginia, and within range, will get a chance to try out the drone delivery option when they order from Wendy's.
Mojica said she has been on a waitlist for weeks for the Fremont area, and when she went online, other people posted replies saying they had been on waitlists for months.
A DoorDash spokesperson confirmed to KTVU that they have implemented waitlists in San Francisco and other parts of the Bay Area. The company sent a statement explaining the reason for its policy for drivers, which the company calls "Dashers" saying: "Waitlists can be implemented when we have enough Dashers in a given market to meet demand. We're always trying to ensure our marketplace has the right balance to meet the needs of consumers, merchants, and Dashers alike."
Ken Jacobs, co-chair of the UC Berkeley Labor Center, says it's a sign of the economy and changing times for the gig-worker industry.
"If there are too many drivers, it means drivers make less and less money," Jacobs said.
"As it stands, by our analysis, delivery drivers in California are making about $5 an hour in regular pay and $11.50 an hour when you put in tips. That's when we consider the full cost of owning and operating their vehicle and doing the work," Jacobs said. "So it's low pay, and the more drivers there are, the longer the waiting time and the less they make."
As for supply and demand, delivery app signs are on many restaurants, but some restaurants say business is down.
"Now, the economy is starting to be good, but restaurants are not good," Hyun Park, manager of Yojimbo in Alameda said.
Meantime, the supply of delivery drivers has increased, according to a member of the California Gig Workers Union, Daryush Khodadadi-Mobarakeh, who says when he started in 2016, a fellow full-time driver made six figures.
"He was making $100,000 to $120,000 per year," Khodadadi-Mobarakeh said. "There are so many drivers out there, you cannot make that much money full-time anymore."
Making it a scramble for those drivers who are still trying to earn money.
"DoorDash with their drivers they arrive super fast, sometimes, like one minute after getting the order they already have a driver assigned," John Trias, manager of Gong-Cha in Alameda said.
Jacobs says using waitlists to restrict the pool of drivers, likely helps keep wages steadier for drivers already signed up.
In California, however, as long as the law treats gig workers as independent contractors, Jacobs says gig workers' unions do not have the power to bargain for higher wages.
"The companies have an extraordinary amount of power in this relationship," Jacobs said. "Unlike any other work, they are able to personalize, both how much drivers earn based on that driver's record, trips the driver has accepted in the past. And then they do the same on the other side by consumers."
An UberEats spokesman said they do not have a waitlist system.
DoorDash says not every area has a waitlist and drivers are able to sign up for different regions.
Mojica says she hopes DoorDash will consider communicating more with potential drivers and give an estimate of how long they might expect to be on a waitlist.