Gig economy companies like Lyft, DoorDash and Postmates are now coming to the rescue of federal workers, whose livelihood is affected by the ongoing government shutdown, through hiring them for their services.
Government employees in Washington, D.C. have reportedly been applying to drive for companies like Uber and Lyft in order to earn a living during the shutdown. According to Postmates, there’s been a “significant spike” in such applications since December 20.
By using #GovernmentShutdown hashtag on Twitter, some gig workers shared a driver sign-up page, recruiting for their companies.
“It would encourage those in need of extra income to consider driving with Lyft, which is a reliable way to make ends meet, and can help these workers fill in the gap during this uncertain time,” said a spokesperson for Lyft.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said that the continued shutdown is unlikely to end anytime soon, adding that it could lead to significant damage to the country’s economy.
“A longer shutdown is something we haven’t had. If we had an extended shutdown, then I do think that would show up in the data pretty clearly,” said Powell, adding that it is also difficult to analyze the health of the economy as monitoring agencies are also affected by the shutdown.
During shutdowns, government employees are permitted to be occupied with outside work, but without violating government ethics requirements of their employment.