Which Gig work platform is better? Staffie vs FastGig vs JOD.

 

Although there are more than just these three platforms (like Troopers and EL Connect), I’m not including those in this comparison for a few reasons:

- Limited job variety that doesn’t interest me.

- Messy systems or frequent last-minute cancellations.

- I’ve never successfully gotten a shift despite trying several times.

For example, I wasn't able to work with EL Connect because they cancelled my shifts last minute. I did try a few more times and seems like they still have the same problem.

So, I’ve chosen to focus on Jobs on Demand (JOD), FastGig, and Staffie, because I’ve personally worked with them.

Job varieties

Staffie:

Mainly F&B roles like servers, dishwashers, and kitchen assistants. Many jobs require a Food Hygiene cert, but not all. Roles like cashier or dishwasher often don’t require it.

JOD (Jobs on Demand):

Widest range of jobs — from retail and F&B to hotels and logistics. Best variety overall.

FastGig:

A mix of packers and F&B (especially fast food and NTUC). Not as wide as JOD, but occasionally has food/fashion promoter jobs that JOD rarely offers.

Payments and Penalties

Staffie:

Staffie process payouts weekly on Monday by 9pm after they have confirmed the working hours with the manager of the outlet you worked at. If Monday is a public holiday, it'll be process the next business day. They pay for the exact hours stated for the shift with no insurance fee.

Penalty wise, they will deprioritised for future applications if you cancelled with less than 24 hours before shift, without a valid reason (like MC). No penalty if you cancelled with more than 24 hours before shift.

JOD (Jobs on Demand):

JOD pays promptly on the next day, so far I haven't faced any delay from them. And they do pay for the extra time you worked. Which means if you clocked in at 1:45 instead of 2:00 for your shift, you'll be paid for that extra 15 minutes, same if you left later. However, JOD do take a small amount for insurance fee.

Last minute cancellation (less than 48 hours before shift) without a valid reason will result in suspension of your account! As for how long the suspension will be, it really depends. I have been suspended once due to unfortunate circumstances and it was for about 2 weeks. (That was when I discovered other platforms like EL Connect and FastGig)

FastGig:

FastGig process payouts weekly on Friday the following week. Meaning if you work on Monday on Week 1, you will only get your pay on the Friday of Week 2. They pay for the exact hours stated for the shift with no insurance fee.

Same with Satffie, they allowed cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your shift. Any shift less than 24 hours before start of shift cannot be cancelled.

Acceptance Rate and Cancellation by Employer

Staffie:

I think Staffie is the most straight forward of the 3. It will only allow you to book for shifts that are available. Usually, if you book a shift, you'll get it immediately.

I also love it that you can try to contact the restaurant by leaving questions on their company page. And after you've booked your shift, you will be added to a chat with the company and you can ask questions there too. (just don't expect fast respond)

Unfortunately for cancellation by employer, you would only be notified via the app.

JOD (Jobs on Demand):

JOD is known for being very difficult to get a shift. Confirmation may not be immediate also, and could takes up to 48 hours. 

JOD will notify you if you're selected/rejected for a shift via email and it will also be reflected in the app.

Cancellation by employer is rare and I have never encountered before.

FastGig:

FastGig has got to be the most messy one out of the 3. The reason being that you would be put into the "waitlist" and "in reserved list" despite them stating that the particular slot still have multiple openings. 

I often applied for a job with multiple openings, got put into waitlist then "in reserved" and finally didn't get the job. FastGig would inform you if you get selected/rejected via email and it could be very last minute. Say less than 5hours before the start of shift.

The most annoying part of FastGig is that, they'll keep suggesting you to shifts but wouldn't confirm any of the shift you booked. Sometimes, they may even Whatsapp you.

And they have very unclaer communication that caused confusions and 2 people turning up for the same shift. After which, they just dump the problem to the company to chase one of the person away.

Cancellation and change of shift time by employer is possible, you will be inform via email.

Help when Needed

Staffie:

I haven't have the need to contact customer service for help when working with Staffie, however I do have access to the chat whereby the owner/manager of the outlet inside too. But just that no one really respond in that chat.

One a side note, Staffie doesn't require the gig worker to do any kind of login and log out on the app when turning up for a shift. So I do keep a record of my shift in case there's any discrepancy.

JOD (Jobs on Demand):

Face problems when logging out for a shift. Contacted JOD via whatsapp, didn't respond till 2 days later. Very slow.

JOD requires the gig worker to login and log out via their app and sometimes this caused problems when either party have no access to the account. Happened to me once.

FastGig:

Same with JOD, CS is non existence when you needed them.

FastGig system is kinda inflexible. You not only need to scan in via the app, they also track your GPS to see if you're at the exact location. It's very annoying because, their GPS is not very accurate and makes it impossible to login! I don't get it, we need the manager approval to scan the QR code to login, so then why do we still need to verify our location as well?

Overall, my experience with gig platforms have been quite good. I love how easy it's to get shifts on Staffie and how fast I can get my pay on JOD. 

I also realised that although Staffie and FastGig enters the scene much later than JOD, it seems that they have been growing (with more and more jobs options) however, JOD seems to have lesser jobs as compared to when I first used it.

My personal take is that JOD is much more strict when it comes to applying and cancellation of jobs and have a harsher punishment to the point it seems quite unfair. I feel asking for MC for cancellation within 48hours is a little too excessive. Also, it's not advisable for you to work and be in contact with food if you're sick (flu) but sometimes, gig workers don't have the luxury to see a doctor over every small flu.