Losing income in the event of an accident or illness is one of the main concerns of delivery men and women. Even so, one in three people who make deliveries through apps are not included in the country's security system.
According to the “Future of Work by Application” survey, carried out by Datafolha at the request of iFood and Uber, 48% of delivery drivers fear they will have no income if they suffer an accident and need to stop working.
“This study sheds light on the topic of benefits and seeks to better understand how delivery people view the issue of Social Security”, says Debora Gershon, head of public policies at iFood. “This is where it differs from research we carried out with Cebrap, which provided general data about the sector.”
The survey interviewed 1,000 couriers and 1,800 drivers active on both platforms between January and March 2023. Overall, 32% of the couriers responded that they do not contribute to the INSS (National Social Security Institute) nor do they have a private pension plan.
Another 34% said they make contributions as employees of a private company or the public sector, and 24% are included in social security as self-employed professionals or self-employed workers.
Even among people who have another activity besides making deliveries on apps, almost half (47%) are not included in Social Security.
“A significant part of those who have other jobs are covered, but another significant part is not yet. This indicates how much social security inclusion is a priority in the debate on regulating work in applications. And given the main concerns of workers, also highlighted in the research, this is a factor of attention even for those who have another occupation”, says Debora.
Why aren't delivery people on Social Security?
Datafolha also asked delivery drivers not covered by the INSS why they are not registered with Social Security.
The main reason is the monthly fee, considered very expensive by 31% for those who are not registered with Social Security. Other important reasons are the lack of knowledge on how to register (24%) and excessive bureaucracy (22%).
On the other hand, if the platforms automatically collected Social Security contributions, 63% of the delivery drivers who participated in the survey would be interested in taking part.
“The social security contribution needs to be proportional to the earnings of these workers”, comments Debora. “And collection by companies can be a solution in this regard.”
Delivery drivers and the MEI
Another way to contribute to Social Security would be to register as a MEI (Individual Microentrepreneur), which gives access to the social security system.
However, the model does not meet the category. The research shows that 7 out of 10 delivery drivers who do not contribute to the INSS know that they can register with the MEI to have access to it, but they do not do so.
And the main reasons stated for not joining MEI are the fact of not earning the same amount every month on apps (31%) and the perception that contributions are very high in relation to income (25%).
“As the delivery drivers’ engagement is variable, so is the profit. This is a reality that probably explains why a fixed monthly payment does not meet the needs of this type of worker”, says Debora.
