Chinese Ride-Hailing Drivers Struggle to Survive in Difficult Conditions

The image is for illustrative purposes. (Dajiyuan Archive)

“I’ve done it all before: running a clothing factory, working on construction sites, even being a subcontractor for a few years. Now, there’s nowhere to work,” said Mr. Cheng, a ride-hailing driver in Jiujiang City, speaking to a reporter.

“I feel more secure driving this car than when I worked in the factory or on construction sites. When I ran the factory, I lost a lot of money, sometimes not even collecting payment. In construction, there were always various conditions and deductions when it came time for payment,” he explained.

When asked why he turned to ride-hailing, he said: “I spent almost a year at home, playing cards every day. I couldn’t keep doing that. If I went to the factory at my age, they’d give me the worst jobs with the lowest pay.” He added, “I’m limited in what I can do and out of touch with society, and I can’t learn new skills anymore.”

Although there are aspects of ride-hailing that he is not satisfied with, Mr. Cheng acknowledged, “In this job, I can make 100 or 200 yuan a day. It’s better than screwing bolts in a factory. Plus, it’s flexible. If I have something to do tomorrow, I can take the day off. If I feel good, I go out and drive.”

Ride-Hailing Drivers Come from All Walks of Life

A 36-year-old driver in Jiangxi province told the reporter that he previously worked in diesel trade in Shanghai. After 2012, with the rise of the internet, prices became more transparent, and the business became increasingly difficult, but it was still manageable. However, after three years of the pandemic, “the business became unsustainable, and I would have lost money if I had continued.” So, he closed the business and returned to Jiangxi, where local job opportunities were limited and salaries low. Unable to find suitable work, he started driving for a ride-hailing platform, and has now been doing it for over a year.

Another driver in Jiangxi, in his fifties, had worked in property management for over 11 years until the company shut down due to conflicts between the two owners. He received severance pay equivalent to 11 months of wages, which totaled just over 20,000 yuan, meaning his monthly salary was barely over 2,000 yuan. He noted that his current earnings from ride-hailing were significantly higher than what he earned in property management.

Mr. Ruan, a ride-hailing driver from Fujian, used to work as a security manager with a monthly salary of six to seven thousand yuan. However, managing security was a challenging job with numerous meetings and difficulty in managing his subordinates. After resigning, he started driving for a ride-hailing service, earning about the same amount. Looking back, he felt that being a security manager was better, but he acknowledged that he could not return to that role.

Some drivers take on ride-hailing as a part-time job. Mr. Lü, a decorator in Jiangxi, mentioned that business had been slow recently, partly due to the downturn in the real estate market. As a result, he started driving in the late afternoon, working until around 8 or 9 p.m. He told the reporter that he could earn about 100 yuan in a few hours of work.

Long Working Hours and Unstable Income

Ride-hailing drivers typically work long hours. Mr. Xie, a driver from Hebei province, told the reporter that he worked “from 7 or 8 a.m. until 1 or 2 a.m.” every day, totaling 17 hours a day.

A post on Chinese social media from an experienced driver described how to maximize earnings: Start driving at 7 a.m. sharp, have a quick 15-minute lunch at noon, and eat dinner in the car. The best-paying jobs come between 9 and 11 p.m., and by 1 a.m., it’s time to charge the car near home. Following this schedule means working around 18 hours a day.

When asked how he dealt with fatigue, Xie said that he would park somewhere to take a nap in his car or, if he was extremely tired, he would go home to sleep. After accounting for expenses, he could earn five to six thousand yuan a month, which was higher than the local average salary of three to four thousand yuan. However, he noted that it had become harder to get orders recently.

He also mentioned that two drivers in his local ride-hailing driver chat group had died suddenly from overwork in the past two months. Xie, who is 35, shrugged it off, saying, “They were in their forties or fifties. I’m still young; I can handle it.”

A young driver in Jiangxi told the reporter that he worked from 8 a.m. until 11 or 12 at night, with a two-hour break at noon. This meant that he worked around 13 to 14 hours a day. When asked if he worked seven days a week, he said that he would take a day off if he had something else to do, but otherwise, he would keep working. Last week, he worked for seven consecutive days.

In smaller cities, ride-hailing drivers often return home for lunch and a break since the distances are shorter and they can save money by eating at home.

Mr. Wu, a young ride-hailing driver from Fujian, followed a different schedule. He worked from around noon until 3 or 4 a.m. He told the reporter that he actually had more passengers at night, and because there was less traffic, he could drive faster and earn more from higher fares. Since fewer drivers were willing to work late at night, there was less competition. His monthly income could exceed 10,000 yuan.

Social Security Issues

A significant number of ride-hailing drivers do not have social security. Mr. Zhang, a driver in his thirties from Hebei, said he had never paid into social security and didn’t plan to in the future. The recent changes to China’s retirement policy, which delays the retirement age, didn’t concern him. Another driver, Mr. Yang, who had recently left his job, said his previous employer had paid into his social security for 12 or 13 years, and he planned to continue making contributions himself until he reached the 15-year requirement.

Mr. Cheng, a ride-hailing driver from rural Jiangxi, born in the 1980s and now in middle age, explained why he chose not to purchase social security: "Buying social security isn't as good as saving that same amount of money in the bank every year." He added, "Some people pay into it, and two months later they pass away, and the principal isn't even refunded—how does that make sense?"

Although Mr. Cheng hasn’t bought into a pension plan, he has purchased medical insurance, which costs him around 400 yuan annually. However, he noted that if he has a serious illness and has to travel to Nanchang, the provincial capital, for treatment, "after all is said and done, only 50% is reimbursed." For minor ailments treated at local hospitals, "it covers 70% to 80%, but only if you're admitted. Outpatient visits aren't covered at all."

He expressed his frustration: "Ordinary people don’t get any real benefits from the state. We have to rely on ourselves for everything. The government squeezes every bit it can from us." He pointed out that drivers also contribute to taxes through fuel purchases, but he was unsure whether the commission deducted by the ride-hailing platform Didi included tax.

The reporter interviewed several ride-hailing drivers, none of whom criticized the platforms for social security issues. Currently, ride-hailing platforms generally classify their relationship with drivers as an intermediary service (where the driver and passenger enter into a transport contract, and the platform is not a party to that contract), rather than as a labor relationship. As a result, platforms typically refuse to pay social security contributions for drivers. For ride-hailing drivers, who are considered part of the flexible workforce, many have little desire to enroll in social security, and some struggle with the ability to make continuous payments.

Taxi Drivers Face Tough Competition

As the number of ride-hailing services continues to increase, taxi drivers are facing a steep decline in income due to intense competition. This trend is also influenced by the growing variety of transportation options available to people: many have purchased private cars, even more have bought electric bicycles, and, in addition to buses and subways, shared bicycles are widely available.

A middle-aged taxi driver from Hebei explained that he and a colleague work in shifts, with each driving 12 hours a day. After accounting for charging time, he spends a little over 11 hours on the road. He pays a daily "rental fee" (known as "fenzu money") of 100 yuan to the taxi company, and he works seven days a week—feeling unable to take a day off because of this daily fee. His weekly working hours amount to 84, and despite his long shifts, he said that making money has become harder than it was last year. On a recent day, he only made 250 yuan in total, and after subtracting the 100 yuan fee, he was left with just over 150 yuan—without even considering the cost of charging his electric taxi. He added that he couldn’t physically manage the same long hours that many ride-hailing drivers endure, working from 8 a.m. to 1 a.m.

A taxi driver from a county-level city in Jiangxi told the reporter that his daily working hours are not fixed, but he usually starts after breakfast and continues until 11 p.m. He works a minimum of 13 to 14 hours a day. When asked if he ever rests on weekends, he said that he works every day, as taking a day off would mean no income. According to him, he works at least 90 hours each week.

In many small and medium-sized cities, taxi drivers struggle to find passengers due to competition from ride-hailing services. Unwilling to spend time driving around the city with an empty taxi, they often choose to wait at train stations for arriving passengers, some of whom need long-distance rides to nearby counties or cities. Because of the time spent waiting for passengers, taxi drivers often prefer to negotiate a fare with the passenger rather than using the meter. Their prices are usually higher than those offered by Didi Express, let alone the economy options like Didi Kuai (Fast) or Tehui Kuai (Special).

Another elderly taxi driver from Jiangxi said that he mostly waits for passengers at train stations or near the entrances of university campuses, especially those needing rides to nearby counties. Since he doesn’t use the meter anymore, his taxi’s meter has been removed altogether, and he sets fares based on negotiation. He claimed that his fares are not significantly higher than those using the meter. He also noted that the decline in the taxi business in recent years is primarily due to the competition from ride-hailing services, but the increasing number of private cars has also had a negative impact on their income.