Delivery Workers in Brazil Emerge as a Coveted Electorate

Joao Paulo Teixeira, a 20-year-old delivery worker in Rio de Janeiro, navigates the city's traffic on his electric motorcycle, a daily routine that underscores the rise of a new, politically influential group in Brazil: app-based delivery workers. These individuals, who often work more than 10 hours a day, six days a week, are increasingly mobilizing to advocate for their rights, making them a coveted electorate for politicians ahead of the October presidential elections.

Teixeira's earnings, between 700 and 1,000 reais weekly (approximately $135-$200), significantly exceed Brazil's minimum wage of about 1,600 reais per month. This demographic, part of Brazil's large informal workforce, is crucial in a country of 213 million people where unemployment is low but informal labor is prevalent. In April, Teixeira participated in a national protest against a proposed bill that sought to regulate app-based work, arguing that the minimum per-trip rate was insufficient.

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Deliveries are like crack. I can't stop doing them. It's my only source of income. When I don't work, I keep thinking about how much I would be earning if I were making deliveries.

Thousands of delivery and ride-sharing drivers across major Brazilian cities joined these protests, leading legislators to indefinitely postpone the analysis of the bill. Experts estimate there were 274,000 app-based delivery workers in Brazil in 2024, though sector representatives believe the actual number is much higher. This group has experienced "massive growth" since the pandemic, according to Nicolas Souza Santos, co-founder of the National Alliance of Application Delivery Workers.

Santos noted that this professional group is electorally attractive not only due to its size but also its "capacity for mobilization." The government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has supported minimum income increases per trip for delivery workers and recently announced measures like easier credit access for motorcycle purchases. Meanwhile, various legislative proposals from both the left and right aim to improve working conditions for these laborers, reflecting their growing political significance in a highly polarized political landscape.

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This professional group had a massive boom since the pandemic. It is electorally coveted, not only because of the large number of delivery workers but also because of their capacity for mobilization.