Labor in times of pandemic: experiences of delivery workers on digital platforms

• Grant number: 20/10259-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: November 01, 2020
• End date: October 31, 2021
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Psychology - Social Psychology
• Principal Investigator: Laura Camara Lima
• Grantee: Beatriz Vieira de Castro Ferreira
• Host Institution: Instituto de Saúde e Sociedade (ISS). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus Baixada Santista. Santos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The delivery platforms became essential on dynamics of great urban center, and in the face of COVID-19 pandemic, the practice of this form of work was classified as essential service. Recent studies show substantial growth on the numbers of drivers and delivers linked to the delivery applications, the increase on work-hours and decrease on compensation of delivers, that shows an ever-growing precarious aspect of work. Literature indicates a development on psychopathologies related to the subsumption of workers to precarious work. Even so, researches on this matter are still scarce. Therefore, the research aims to investigate the impacts on the mental health of these workers in the face of this new form of work organization and repercussion of its enhancement, aggravated by the pandemic of COVID-19 through an exploratory and qualitative-comprehensive study. Data collection will take place through semi-structured interviews with workers linked to applications, carried out through video calls. The interviews will be transcribed and semantic and pragmatic analyzes will be carried out through the Alceste program, highlighting keywords, interest categories, intergroup relationships and the power dynamics that the subjects' discourse reveals. The results will be used to support therapeutic actions by health professionals in the area of occupational health and to inspire and subsidize public policies that address the psychosocial suffering of this category of workers.