Almost half of China's workforce is now in the gig economy

Nearly half of China’s workforce now earns through so-called flexible employment - an estimated 320 million people, about 44 percent of workers - as economic slowdown and high youth unemployment push people into food delivery, ride-hailing and other gig roles. For many, gig work is a low-barrier lifeline after layoffs, business failure or unpaid construction work, but what starts as a temporary fix often becomes prolonged because better formal jobs are scarce. Young riders and older migrants alike accept long hours and intense competition to secure payouts, with some preferring reliable daily pay to the delays and uncertainty of other informal work.

The day-to-day reality is tightly controlled and risky: platforms set very short delivery deadlines (sometimes about 20 minutes), use algorithms to allocate jobs, track movements and demand “selfie proof” of helmets and uniforms within seconds, and levy heavy fines for mistakes - one rider cited a 500-yuan penalty for a wrong delivery. Piece rates have fallen, forcing riders to complete more drops to maintain income, which incentivises speeding, traffic violations and mental strain. Field examples show extreme schedules - a rider working 10am-11pm completing 28 deliveries and 68km for roughly $45, another doing 15-hour days earning about $1,900 monthly - highlighting how surveillance, penalties and thin pay create persistent precarity.