The Changing World of Work

A way of working that has expanded dramatically in Uzbekistan is app-based delivery work — couriers who deliver food and groceries through platforms like Yandex and Uzum. A few years ago, they were a rare sight; now, especially in Tashkent, you see riders on scooters with large insulated backpacks on almost every street, at almost every hour. Most of the couriers are young men, often students or recent arrivals from the regions, though increasingly there are older workers supplementing other incomes. It has grown for several reasons. Smartphone ownership has become nearly universal, consumer habits shifted sharply during the pandemic, and the platforms offer an easy entry point: you can start working within days, without qualifications, and choose your own hours. Whether it’s a positive development is, I think, genuinely complicated. On the positive side, it provides immediate income to people who might otherwise be unemployed, and the flexibility genuinely suits students. For consumers, it’s obviously convenient. However, there are serious concerns. Couriers are usually classified as independent contractors rather than employees, so they typically lack sick pay, insurance or pensions, even though they bear real risks — riding in heavy traffic in extreme heat and cold. Their income can also fluctuate unpredictably according to algorithms they don’t control. So, on balance, I’d say it’s positive as a stepping stone, but problematic as a long-term livelihood. The challenge for policymakers is to preserve the flexibility while guaranteeing a basic level of protection — some countries have introduced minimum earnings and accident insurance, which seems a sensible middle path.

Hodisa → kim → nega o‘sdi → murakkab baho (ijobiy, salbiy) → “stepping stone vs livelihood” → siyosiy yechim.