Breathe
By Pamela Cerdeira
She is 44 years old, is responsible for the care of others, worries that it will be more difficult to enter the workforce after 50, and would hate to have to ask permission from a boss every May 10 school holiday, May 10 school holiday rehearsal, child with the flu, sick relative, fall at school, spring festival. If she gets financial stability, it would be easier for her to get out of that toxic relationship. And she has been told that this job is a man's job; some ask if her husband gave her permission to work in it.
If it weren't for the "toxic relationship" thing, it could be me, or Ana, or you. In 2023, Simetría A.C., a civil organization specialized in public policies with a gender perspective, conducted a study to learn about the opportunities and obstacles for women who use Uber and Uber Eats apps to generate income.
We care about money, but we care more about flexibility.
Years ago, a friend who works in the financial sector was telling me that we women are willing to work for less money than our male counterparts because we pay up front for the absences we thought (and perhaps falsely) we were going to have. This illustrates some of the findings of the study: of course they work as drivers or delivery drivers for the money, but the initial motivation is flexibility. They wish they could use the app more, but their caregiving work prevents them from doing so. Care work, a theme that recurred in focus groups and surveys, was never mentioned in the men's group.
Most women use the application in the mornings, and, surprise, although security is one of the reasons for choosing the schedule, it is not the main one; first, 33% because they have another economic activity, 32.4% because they are in charge of the care of a family member, and 22.8% for security.
The study asked an interesting question: how many hours they use the application according to their level of schooling. Those whose highest level of education is completed elementary school spend seven days a week online, and the number of days decreases according to education level, with 5.4 days for those who have completed a bachelor's degree. Most of the women surveyed do not have a partner and devote most of their resources to supporting their household. The study participants are between 19 and 68 years of age.
Uber's intention is that more and more women can be integrated as drivers or delivery drivers. In the case of female drivers, the Ellas function allows them to select rides only from people who identify themselves as women.
Providing options to generate more and better resources for all women, regardless of their level of education or age, is an effort that needs to be promoted from all areas. For example, in the CDMX there is a fiscal stimulus for companies that operate apps and whose drivers are women.
So if someone thinks of saying the crazy thing that women don't know how to park on batteries, these drivers will surely answer that why would they want to park, when they don't have time to stop between driving and caregiving.
The opinions expressed are the responsibility of the authors and are absolutely independent of the position and editorial line of the company. Opinion 51.
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