How a mom with 4 kids who drives for DoorDash and Walmart Spark struggles to make ends meet: 'It is a never-ending vicious cycle'

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Bri drives predominantly for DoorDash.SOPA Images / Getty Images
  • Bri, a single mom of four, is struggling to make ends meet driving for DoorDash and Walmart Spark.

  • Bri turned to gig driving after a knee injury made her previous job at an Amazon warehouse untenable.

  • Despite working long hours, she can barely pull in $400 a week after accounting for expenses.

Bri, 40, is lost on what to do next. The single mom of four, who lives in Fort Worth, Texas, pulls in about $400 a week driving for DoorDash, Walmart Spark, and Skipcart, which isn't enough for her and her kids to live comfortably.

She drives while her kids are in school and after they're in bed, and she's using her daughter's car since she can't afford to buy a new car. She said after delivering food all day, she waits in line at a food pantry to get food for her and her kids.

It's what she has to do to provide for her family, given her osteoarthritis that makes it difficult for her to do other types of work. Bri asked to just use her first name for fear of professional repercussions.

"When we file taxes, we're self-employed, so we pay the self-employment tax, but gig drivers aren't prepared for that throughout the year," Bri told Business Insider. "It's hard to put money up when you're depending on literally tips."

Bri is one of many single parents who recently told BI they cannot work a stable 9-to-5 job while caring for their kids and instead rely on gig driving. Income is unpredictable and money is tight for many gig workers having to pay childcare costs.

Lyft said in February it would guarantee weekly earnings for drivers at 70% or more of what riders paid after external fees. Lyft noted that the typical US driver earned about $23 per engaged hour — or hours spent picking up or dropping off customers — after expenses. Uber said the typical US driver earned about $33 per engaged hour before driving expenses, per an announcement in November. DoorDash said that in New York City, drivers earn minimum guaranteed earnings of $17.96 per active hour.

In reality, given some drivers only have rides for half the time they're on delivery apps, these hourly earnings are frequently lower.

Gig driving with a disability

Bri was a business owner in home healthcare, but once the pandemic struck, she lost access to many of her clients.

She decided to work at an Amazon warehouse, which was somewhat flexible with her schedule, especially raising a child with Down syndrome. She was assigned to pack boxes and lift heavy items, often working 10-hour shifts and making about $600 a week.