Perceived income stability and financial security among gig workers in Indonesia: a socioeconomic and occupational analysis
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3846/btp.2026.24901Abstract
The gig economy of flexible, platform-mediated, and task-based work has been reshaping the labour markets of countries worldwide, including Indonesia. Gig workers usually operate without formal contracts or social protection and face unique challenges related to income volatility management and long-term financial planning. This study analyses how gig workers in Indonesia perceive income stability and financial security at the individual level on various socio-economic and occupational dimensions. Based on a crosssectional survey of 1,196 respondents from Java Island, the study uses descriptive statistics, Spearman correlations, Mann-Whitney U tests, and Kruskal-Wallis analyses to identify behavioral and structural determinants of financial perceptions. A strong positive correlation is detected between perceived financial security and income stability; however, it varies remarkably in selected income brackets, savings behavior, work tenure, bonus frequency, and debt sources. Urban freelancers, especially those in Jakarta, report higher financial confidence compared to rural service-sector workers. The study will point out the role of financial literacy, platform incentives, and regional infrastructure in shaping economic resilience. Centering the lived experiences of gig workers themselves, this paper contributes to policy discussions on the regulation of digital labour and social protection in Indonesia’s evolving gig economy.
Keywords:
gig economy, income stability, financial security, platform labor, Indonesia, digital work, socioeconomic disparitiesHow to Cite
Share
License
Copyright (c) 2026 The Author(s). Published by Vilnius Gediminas Technical University.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
Abdullah, N., Ismail, M. M., Murad, M. S. H., Jusoff, K., Kurniawan, F., & Salah, M. (2024). Critical insights into gig economy: A Peninsular Malaysia case study. Jambe Law Journal, 7(2), 395–427. https://doi.org/10.22437/home.v7i2.460
Ai, W., Chen, Y., Mei, Q., Ye, J., & Zhang, L. (2023). Putting teams into the gig economy: A field experiment at a ride-sharing platform. Management Science, 69(6), 5336–5353. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.4624
Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-T
Alauddin, F. D. A., Aman, A., Ghazali, M. F., & Daud, S. (2025). The influence of digital platforms on gig workers: A systematic literature review. Heliyon, 11(1), Article e41491. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e41491
Alfarizi, M., Noer, L. R., & Noer, B. A. (2025). Technological support, hybrid work, and national employment policies: Catalysts for worker productivity and SDG 8 achievement in Indonesia’s gig economy. Jurnal Ketenagakerjaan, 20(1). https://doi.org/10.47198/jnaker.v20i1.440
Al-Massalkhi, R., & Ajonbadi, H. A. (2024). Pushing beyond limit: Has gig work exacerbated precarious and psychological contracts in China? In HRM, artificial intelligence and the future of work (pp. 61–68). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-62369-1_4
Ali, M., Hussain, H. I., Nisar, Q. A., Chang, Y. W., Hamid, B. A., & Mahomed, Z. (2023). Are gig workers protected? A possible solution. International Journal of Economics and Finance Studies, 15(3), 282–302.
Ayyubi, M. S. A., & Asrofi, D. A. N. (2023). Kerentanan dan kesejahteraan pada pekerja ekonomi gig [Vulnerability and well-being of the gig economy workers]. WJES: West Java Economic Society, 1(1). https://wjes.or.id/prosiding/index.php/cfp/article/view/23
Bajwa, U., Gastaldo, D., Ruggiero, E. D., & Knorr, L. (2018). The health of workers in the global gig economy. Globalization and Health, 14(1), Article 124. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12992-018-0444-8
Bajwa, U., Knorr, L., Ruggiero, E., Gastaldo, D., & Zendel, A. (2021). Towards an understanding of workers’ experiences in the global gig economy. Globalization and Health, 17(1), 1–13.
Behl, A., Sheorey, P., Jain, K., Chavan, M., Jajodia, I., & Zhang, Z. J. (2021). Gamifying the gig: Transitioning the dark side to bright side of online engagement. Australasian Journal of Information Systems, 25, 1–34. https://doi.org/10.3127/ajis.v25i0.2979
Bunjak, A., Černe, M., & Popovič, A. (2021). Absorbed in technology but digitally overloaded: Interplay effects on gig workers’ burnout and creativity. Information & Management, 58(3), Article 103533. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2021.103533
Burbano, V. C., & Chiles, B. (2022). Mitigating gig and remote worker misconduct: Evidence from a real effort experiment. Organization Science, 33(4), 1273–1299. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2021.1488
Cameron, L. D. (2022). “Making out” while driving: Relational and efficiency games in the gig economy. Organization Science, 33(1), 231–252. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2021.1547
Cameron, L. D., & Rahman, H. (2022). Expanding the locus of resistance: Understanding the co-constitution of control and resistance in the gig economy. Organization Science, 33(1), 38–58. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2021.1557
Cameron, L. D., Thomason, B., & Conzon, V. M. (2021). Risky business: Gig workers and the navigation of ideal worker expectations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Applied Psychology, 106(12), 1821–1833. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000993
Caza, B. B., Reid, E. M., Ashford, S. J., & Granger, S. (2022). Working on my own: Measuring the challenges of gig work. Human Relations, 75(10), 2122–2159. https://doi.org/10.1177/00187267211030098
De Stefano, V. (2016). The rise of the “just-in-time workforce”: On-demand work, crowdwork, and labor protection in the “gig-economy.” Comparative Labor Law & Policy Journal, 37(3), 471–504. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2682602
De Stefano, V., Wouters, M., & Aloisi, A. (2021). Algorithmic management and collective rights in the platform economy. International Labour Review, 160(1), 1–25.
Demirgüç-Kunt, A., Klapper, L., Singer, D., & Ansar, S. (2022). The Global Findex Database 2021: Financial inclusion, digital payments, and resilience in the age of COVID-19. World Bank. https://doi.org/10.1596/978-1-4648-1897-4
Duggan, J., & Jooss, S. (2023). Gig work, algorithmic technologies, and the uncertain future of work. In The future of work in the digital economy (pp. 53–72). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-31494-0_4
Duggan, J., Sherman, U., Carbery, R., & McDonnell, A. (2022). Boundaryless careers and algorithmic constraints in the gig economy. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(22), 4468–4498. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.1953565
Felix, R., Gunawan, A., & Prasetyo, D. (2023). Behavioral finance and income volatility among informal workers. Journal of Economic Psychology, 89, Article 102567.
Glavin, P., & Schieman, S. (2022). Dependency and hardship in the gig economy: The mental health consequences of platform work. Socius: Sociological Research for a Dynamic World, 8, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1177/23780231221082414
Healy, J., Nicholson, D., & Pekarek, A. (2017). Should we take the gig economy seriously? Labour & Industry, 27(3), 232–248. https://doi.org/10.1080/10301763.2017.1377048
Hobfoll, S. E. (1989). Conservation of resources: A new attempt at conceptualizing stress. American Psychologist, 44(3), 513–524. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.44.3.513
Huda, N., Yudhistira, B., & Arifin, M. Z. R. M. (2024). The hidden cost of gig worker formalization in Indonesia. CELIOS Policy Brief. https://celios.co.id/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/The-Hidden-Cost-of-Gig-Worker-Formalization-in-Indonesia.pdf
James, D. (2021). Financial citizenship and the gig economy: Precarity, debt, and the politics of inclusion. Anthropology Today, 37(2), 1–4. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8322.12645
Kadolkar, I., Kepes, S., & Subramony, M. (2025). Algorithmic management in the gig economy: A systematic review and research integration. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 46(7), 1057–1080. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2831
Kässi, O., & Lehdonvirta, V. (2018). Online labour index: Measuring the online gig economy for policy and research. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 137, 241–248. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2018.07.056
Krejcie, R. V., & Morgan, D. W. (1970). Determining sample size for research activities. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 30(3), 607–610. https://doi.org/10.1177/001316447003000308
Lesmana, S. J., & Samudra, M. M. (2025). Legal protection of gig economy workers: A comparative study in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. SASI, 31(3), 201–218. https://doi.org/10.47268/sasi.v31i3.3006
Liang, Y., Zhang, H., & Liu, Y. (2023). Incentive structures and financial confidence in platform work. Journal of Digital Labor Studies, 4(2), 99–117.
Liu, W., He, C., Jiang, Y., Ji, R., & Zhai, X. (2020). Effect of gig workers’ psychological contract fulfillment on their task performance in a sharing economy – A perspective from the mediation of organizational identification and the moderation of length of service. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(7), Article 2208. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17072208
Milkman, R., Elliott-Negri, L., Griesbach, K., & Reich, A. (2021). Gender, class, and the gig economy: The case of platform-based food delivery. Critical Sociology, 47(3), 357–372. https://doi.org/10.1177/0896920520949631
Myhill, D., Taylor, M., & Smith, J. (2021). Dual labor markets in the platform economy: A typology of gig work. Work, Employment and Society, 35(6), 1057–1075.
Natalia, C., & Putranto, F. G. F. (2023). Kerentanan Kesejahteraan Gig Worker di Indonesia Pascapandemi [The vulnerability of gig worker welfare in Indonesia post-pandemic]. Jurnal Ekonomi Indonesia, 12(2), 173–186. https://doi.org/10.52813/jei.v12i2.479
Oranburg, S., & Palagashvili, L. (2018). The gig economy, smart contracts, and disruption of traditional work arrangements. SSRN. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3270867
Permana, M. Y., Izzati, N. R., & Askar, M. W. (2022). Measuring the gig economy in Indonesia: Typology, characteristics, and distribution. Jurnal Manajemen Teknologi, 21(3). https://doi.org/10.12695/jmt.2022.21.3.7
Pratomo, D. S., Saputra, P. M. A., Asrofi, D. A. N., Natalia, C., & Zenritami, S. L. (2024). Gig workers in the digital era in Indonesia: Development, vulnerability and welfare. In Proceedings of the 2023 Brawijaya International Conference (BIC 2023). Advances in Economics, Business and Management Research (Vol. 282, pp. 45–56). Atlantis Press. https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6463-525-6_6
Prasetyo, E. H. (2024). Digital platforms’ strategies in Indonesia: Navigating between technology and informal economy. Technology in Society, 76, Article 102414. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2023.102414
Ramadani, A. R., Sari, A. P., Usardi, E. A., Setiani, F. N., & Gunawan, A. (2024). Dampak gig economy terhadap stabilitas pendapatan dan kesejahteraan pekerja [The impact of the gig economy on income stability and workers’ welfare]. Jurnal Spektrum Ekonomi, 7(12). https://oaj.jurnalhst.com/index.php/jse/article/view/7230
Royono, R., Brailovskaya, V., Muthahhari, T., & Adiputri, L. (2025). Who are gig workers? Insights from Indonesia. IDinsight.
Sankararaman, G., Rengaraju, N., Rengarajan, V., Vembu, N. R., & Indhumathi, D. (2024). Gig economy’s impact on workforce dynamics and economic resilience. Educational Administration: Theory and Practice, 30(6), 1627–1634. https://doi.org/10.53555/kuey.v30i6.5561
Sitorus, A. A., & Kornitasari, Y. (2024). Analisis tingkat kesejahteraan pekerja gig di Indonesia [An analysis of gig workers’ welfare in Indonesia]. Journal of Development Economic and Social Studies, 3(2). https://doi.org/10.21776/jdess.2024.03.2.16
Tan, Z. M., Aggarwal, N., Cowls, J., Morley, J., Taddeo, M., & Floridi, L. (2021). The ethical debate about the gig economy: A review and critical analysis. Technology in Society, 65, Article 101594. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2021.101594
Taylor, M., Marsh, G., Nicol, D., & Broadbent, P. (2023). Good work: The Taylor review of modern working practices. UK Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy.
Todolí-Signes, A. (2017). The “gig economy”: Employee, self-employed or the need for a special employment regulation? Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research, 23(2), 193–205. https://doi.org/10.1177/1024258917701381
Vadavi, S., & Sharmiladevi, J. C. (2024). Analysing the evolution and patterns of the gig economy: A bibliometric examination of growth and trends. Cogent Business & Management, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2024.2424480
Van Doorn, N. (2017). Platform labor: On the gendered and racialized exploitation of low-income service work in the ‘on-demand’ economy. Information, Communication & Society, 20(6), 898–914. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2017.1294194
Veluchamy, R., Reddy, P., Pillai, R., & Singh, R. (2021). A study on work-life integration of gig workers. In Anthology of multi-functional perspectives in business and management research (pp. 23–32). Eureka Publications. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353408947
Wood, A. J., Graham, M., Lehdonvirta, V., & Hjorth, I. (2019). Good gig, bad gig: Autonomy and algorithmic control in the global gig economy. Work, Employment and Society, 33(1), 56–75. https://doi.org/10.1177/0950017018785616
Yasih, D. W. P. (2022). Normalizing and resisting the new precarity: A case study of the Indonesian gig economy. Critical Sociology, 49(4–5), 847–863. https://doi.org/10.1177/08969205221087130
Zhou, Y. (2023). Platform labor and the regulatory vacuum: Rethinking employment classification in the digital economy. Journal of Digital Labor Policy, 5(1), 22–39.
View article in other formats
CrossMark check
Published
Issue
Section
Copyright
Copyright (c) 2026 The Author(s). Published by Vilnius Gediminas Technical University.
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.