In Mexico City, growing numbers of women earn their living as gig workers. As women bear the burden of care work, apps like Uber, Didi, and Rappi offer them flexible working hours, letting them decide when to connect and disconnect from their jobs.

But women in this line of work are not only constantly exposed to road accidents and crime but also suffer from gender-based violence.

Mexico City is a particularly dangerous place for women: on average, nearly 19 women were raped in the city every day in 2022, and the year prior, nearly half of women aged 15 and over were victims of some type of violence. Without proper legal protection, women delivery workers using bicycles, motorbikes, cars, and even the subway to get around the capital have been empowered by collective action and have come together to form a union.

Female gig workers say emergency buttons on their apps do not work. To better protect gig workers, unions and labor rights groups have created WhatsApp support groups, where they can report being victims of a crime or an accident. Female delivery workers have also established “Puntos Naranja” or Orange Spots, a place inside restaurants where they can rest, meet, connect to Wi-Fi, recharge phones, use the bathroom, and ask for help if necessary.

In Mexico City, Puntos Naranja function as gathering spots for members of these WhatsApp groups. These women are also hoping to make progress on labor rights. After two years of negotiations with the government and gig work platforms, a bill is due to be presented before Congress that aims to grant delivery workers and drivers labor groups certain rights, such as access to public healthcare and road accident insurance.