Coronavirus fallout: Grim outlook for freelancers as contract jobs disappear

Vinod Kumar*, a freelance transcriber based in Mumbai, usually earns about Rs 50,000 per month. However, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 95 percent of his work was cancelled.

“I earned less than Rs 1,000 in February and March has been a washout,” he said. He fears a similar trend to continue in the next couple of months.

In the case of Arjun S*, another freelance transcriber, he had his work contract terminated given the uncertainty. “With no clarity on how long the situation lasts, it is quite worrying,” he admits.

This is the situation a significant portion of the freelancer community, across different sectors, is facing in India as the coronavirus outbreak is impacting jobs and livelihoods of people.

Take for instance Kumar. His work involves transcribing meetings and conference details for his clients, most of them Korean and Japanese. However, as the COVID-19 outbreak began to spread, most of the meetings and conferences cancelled starting from Japan and Korea.

“So that means, no work for me,” Kumar pointed out. Thankfully, he is working part-time in a small firm and his wife is employed as well. “So I will be able to tide this over,” Kumar added.

However, the same cannot be said for others. For Arjun, who is staying alone and is highly dependent on freelancer work, things are tricky. Most of his clients are US hospitals, where he transcribes medical operations. “In the US, almost no operations have happened because all hospitals are focusing on coronavirus outbreak,” he explained.

So his contract was terminated, leaving him without a job. Though he will be able to manage the next 2-3 months, any longer he will have to look for an alternate career and taking a huge pay cut at that.

Apart from transcribers, others who are impacted include ad film directors and freelance coders, who have hardly seen any demand for their services because of lockdown and reduced operations.

Worst-case scenario

The worst-case scenario, which seems more likely, looms. As freelancers, their income is seasonal and can tide them over for a couple of months. In some cases, it could be six months. However, with no clarity on how long the situation could prolong, their challenges are diverse.

For one, paying bills like rent and loan would be a major challenge after three months. EMIs have been deferred for three months and landlords have been understanding. Others have moved to their hometowns to save up. They will have to look for new jobs, probably in a different field and skill yourself, which again will cost you more money.

“This is not something a freelancer, who might not have a lot money saved up, could do,” pointed out Nasir D*, a freelancer coder.

Relief measures

Countries such as Germany have announced relief packages for freelancers. Germany has announced a €40 billion relief package for freelancers and small businesses up to 10 employees. The UK government has also announced that it will support freelancers who will be impacted because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Most countries have not announced a relief package but have put the onus on the companies to take care of temporary workers.

Grim future
What most of them are afraid of is the demand scenario and if it will remain the same in the post-COVID-19 world. Kamal Karanth, founder, Xpheno, a specialised hiring firm, said, while tech freelancers’ work is interrupted now, normalcy is likely to resume post the crisis since remote working is gaining more acceptance.

However, it cannot be said for other sectors. Srinivasan S*, an ad filmmaker, pointed out that things might not come back to normal in the coming months. “Marketing budgets are being slashed and focus in right now on digital. It could potentially become mainstream considering cost involved,” he explained.

*Names have been changed to protect identities.