We reached out to one of our readers to get their take on a typical shift as a Skip The Dishes driver. Hopefully anyone looking to sign up as a Skip The Dishes driver can get some insight on how it works, some pain points and why drivers like Pascale love it so much! We hope you enjoy!
A Day in the Life of a Skip The Dishes Driver
As I come around the side of the building for the third time, trying to figure out where the lobby is, I notice two kids running towards me. It was getting dark and the rain was heavy, creating a gloomy, eerie scene in which I could barely distinguish anything, let alone a few worn-out digits on a brick wall.
A couple of kids in the parking lot look me over, notice my delivery bag and point me in the right direction. A quick reverse maneuver leads me to the main entrance where I proceed to park illegally. I put my hazards on and a handwritten “Skip The Dishes Driver – Back in a Flash” note on my dashboard. I doodled a smiley face on it thinking it might help me avoid a ticket or disgruntled property manager.
Making The Delivery
There are instructions from the customer requesting that I call upon arrival so we can meet in the lobby. No apartment or buzzer number. Unsurprisingly, he doesn’t answer when I ring his number, which is generated automatically through the app. I leave a voicemail and wait. Minutes go by before I ring him again, to no avail.
Suddenly I get a glimpse of a man stepping out of the elevator, holding an overly excited dalmatian at the end of a leash. At last, here comes my guy! It’s not him though, but I do appreciate his sympathy for my situation. “Woah, that sucks,” he says. I use the encounter to enter the building’s lobby and place the food in a little seating area.
At this point, I’ve contacted driver chat support through the app and they approve of my efforts. I’m good to go. Sorry I missed you buddy but I’m not exactly paid by the hour. After all, everything is supposed to be “contactless” and this is a low-end order for me at seven bucks.
Parking, Proximity and Pay
As soon as I’ve checked my “delivered order” box in the Skip The Dishes driver app I am immediately matched to a new order. It is a $14 one at a small restaurant just down the road. Perfect. Those are the ones you strive for. It will take me less than five minutes to drive to their ample parking lot and hopefully pick up the order straightaway.
The next client’s address appears to be a house, not a building, thankfully. It’s less than 3km away from the restaurant so if I can complete this order from start to finish in under fifteen minutes I’ll be a happy camper. That’s easy money right there. Skip The Dishes drivers aren’t under any obligation to accept all orders but they advise you to maintain an 80% acceptance rate to keep the algorithm working in your favour, or so they say.
What’s the difference between driving for Skip the Dishes and Uber Eats? We break it all down for you!
UberEATS vs Skip The Dishes: What is the difference for Drivers?
I turn the volume up on my old iPod, it’s jacked into an actual boombox that I’ve rigged up via an inverter in my old Toyota that only had a CD player to offer. I prefer to keep my devices separate on the road; fewer things to juggle, and my iPhone’s battery can hardly keep up as it is anyway. The Skip The Dishes driver app sure seems to drain it fast, especially when the GPS is running.
By now it is almost dark, the rain has intensified and the Radiohead song that comes on seems fitting to the atmosphere. I quickly capture a picture of the raindrops on my window.
Skip the Dishes Driver Pay and Shifts
Now I am off to collect my 12th order on today’s shift. I picked it up last night on the fly, a 4:30-8:30 Tuesday shift. Open shifts are always available, that’s how most couriers roll. You just sign in and pick them up if you want to work, or you can schedule in advance. It’s currently 8:15, so I’m calling it quits after this order.
Just before my shift is scheduled to end, I got a pop-up window in the app offering me to extend it; it’s a high-volume night. If I accept, I get to pick for how long. Another hour or more, it’s up to me. Tonight, however, I’ll swipe the “no thanks” option as I’m looking forward to going home. My clothes are damp, I’m getting the chills and to be fair, my night vision just isn’t what it used to be.
With this last order, my earnings, shown in real-time as I go about my driving, are at just under $130. I still have to pull off a thirty-minute drive out of this delivery zone to reach the safe haven I call home, a remote piece of land in the woodlands. For an extra two bucks, I’ll get tonight’s earnings directly deposited. If not, it happens weekly on Tuesdays.
Being my Own Boss
I’ve been running my own little housekeeping one-woman show for seven years. It’s been amazing being able to make my own schedules and not answer to a boss or even just coworkers. But the work is physical and I’ve been suffering from chronic back problems.
I chose to cut back quite a bit, from four days to three. It was either that or I’d be seeing a lot more of the walker and cane I borrowed. I needed to find another way to make ends meet. Without compromising on the flexible independence that I’ve grown accustomed to.
The A-ha Moment
We were out dining when I noticed this never-ending coming and going of Skip The Dishes drivers. All shapes and sizes and it just flicked a switch for me. I used to work for Dine-In Victoria, which was the analog version of these ultra-sophisticated online delivery services. There was an office with dispatchers who communicated through text with drivers in uniform. Most of the orders to the restaurants went through fax! Many of these places couldn’t keep up when Skip arrived on the scene and shut down.
Now as a Skip The Dishes driver it has been like going from an old Nokia to the newest iPhone. With that being said, even the newest device will occasionally make you cringe. There’s the slow shifts, the glitchy app, and the hard-to-find houses. The dark roads and traffic jams, the wait times, and the generally rare “no tippers”. Still, when you’re out there on your own terms making a living, listening to music and observing this strange new world from the comfort of your car seat, it really isn’t that bad… In fact, it’s pretty good.
Learn more about the requirements and pay for a Skip the Dishes driver with this a step by step walk-through of the sign-up process.
Skip The Dishes Courier: A Complete Guide
