Irregularised migrants in the Delivery Sector (Berlin)

The present report offers a synopsis of the principal findings of WP5 within the broader I-CLAIM Project, with a particular focus on the working conditions of migrants in the food delivery sector in Berlin. It provides a contextual analysis of the platform economy in the city, and an examination of the experiences of migrant workers as international students. For the international students, financial dependence on insecure employment in the platform economy combined with the high cost of living in the city results in significant precarity.

Additionally, many migrants were only able to finance their migration trajectory through loans taken out in their home countries, which drives them into a spiral of debt. Despite ongoing efforts by the trade union for Food, Beverages, and Hospitality (Gewerkschaft Nahrung-Genuss-Gaststätten) to advance labour struggles in the sector of food delivery, the platform economy hinders worker mobilization through the lack of transparency regarding contracting parties and employers, as well as continuous pressure on employees. Overall, the immediate recruitment of mostly young early-career migrants from third countries upon their arrival reflects a strategic exploitation of individuals who are inexperienced and typically harbour strong aspirations to enter the labour market in Germany. The report also includes a description and reflection on the ethnographic methodology employed. In this vein, the community researchers who assisted access to the migrants helped secure the perspectives of four female riders.