Gender studies

Pathology

Sociology

Business

Social distance

Work (physics)

Limiting

Disease

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)

Demographic economics

Economic growth

Infectious disease (medical specialty)

Pandemic

Labour economics

Engineering

Political science

Economics

Precarious work

Safety net

Precarity

Unemployment

Public relations

Gig economy

Medicine

Mechanical engineering

Sociological Perspectives

While social distancing measures are essential in limiting the impact of a pandemic, such measures are often less feasible for low-income groups such as precarious workers who continue to travel on public transit and are less able to practice social distancing measures. In this paper, based on in-depth remote interviews conducted from April 2020 through June 2020, with more than 130 gig and precarious workers in New York City, we find that precarious workers experience three main hurdles in regard to accessing unemployment assistance that can be broadly categorized as knowledge, sociological, and temporal/financial barriers. Drawing on worker interview responses, we have named these responses: (1) Didn’t Know, (2) Didn’t Want, and (3) Can’t Wait. These challenges have led workers to turn to gig and precarious work, further highlighting the inequities of the pandemic. As a result, for some workers, so-called “side hustles” have become their primary social safety net.

The Side Hustle Safety Net: Precarious Workers and Gig Work during COVID-19