Ms Symons retired from financial planning about three years ago and was relying on the age pension for an income. But as a renting divorcée with four children and 11 grandchildren, it was hard to make ends meet. The maximum pension payment the 73-year-old could get amounted to about $675 a week. “When you take your rent out of that, the noodles are looking good [but] I don’t want to eat noodles,” she said.

Being a driver paid per job to deliver groceries, alcohol, takeaway meals and pharmacy items gave her the lifestyle she wanted in her retirement, Ms Symons said. “It gives me an ability to have a life and to live in a nice house,” the resident of the Redlands region of south-east Brisbane said. “I could go and live in a little box somewhere or a caravan but I choose to live in a nice place and to do that I have to work harder.”

Retirees embrace gig economy

While little data yet exists to capture the scale of Australia’s growing digital platform gig economy work, anecdotal evidence suggests more older Australians are getting behind the wheel to prop up their income and meet the rising costs of living.

More gig workers were male (71 per cent) and the most common type of work among so-called digital platform workers was delivering food and goods, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

National Seniors Australia chief executive Chris Grice said a single age pension amounted to about $29,000 a year, but the cost of groceries and insurance was rising well beyond inflation.

“What we’re seeing is that – in spite of commentary that’s saying that inflation is under control [and] cost of living is in check – that’s not the case at all,” he said.

Women with a small superannuation balance and renters were especially badly off.

“In particular women that may have had career breaks … [and] those that are in the rental market – that they’re not in a fortunate position to have that security of owning their own home – they’re paying a big chunk of money in rent,” Mr Grice said.

If a pensioner did more than two days work a week they were penalised financially and taxed at a higher rate.

And Mr Grice said there were other disincentives to pensioners working, such as having to report income changes every fortnight.

“That’s where people just go, ‘This is all just too jolly hard'”, he said.

Work of last resort

The gig economy was not necessarily pensioners’ first choice of work in retirement but it was available when people wanted – or needed – to keep working.

“Therefore it’s becoming, or could be becoming, a default for many,” Mr Grice said.

But Trish Symons said driving around south-east Brisbane taking orders to people at home worked for her.

“It just fitted into my lifestyle; I didn’t have to fit into its lifestyle,” she said.

“If I don’t feel well, I don’t go. If I’m feeling great, I’ll work all day. So it’s on my terms and I work how I want to work, when I want to work.

“If I’ve got a big bill coming up, I’ll work extra. If not, I’ll just cruise a little bit.”

“I used to do lunchtime and dinner time but – I hate to say it – but at my age I’m finding that I don’t like driving at night.”

Ms Symons also enjoyed the human connection the contract work offered.

The human connection

She delivers a bottle of wine to the same woman every day and chats to her about her cat.

“She’s obviously got a drinking problem,” Ms Symons said.

“But when I went to deliver the wine to her, she just wanted to chat. She wanted to tell me about her cat, and she wanted to chat.”

The exchange was good for both the DoorDash-er and her customer.

“That’s probably the best interaction she’ll have all day, apart from her bottle of wine.

“And that saddens me, but at least I’ve been able to give her a little bit of joy for that day, you know?”