Paid shoppers, delivery drivers on the front lines of the coronavirus crisis ...

(For some reason the Boston Herald newspaper has this article under ‘obituaries')

They set out each day with hand sanitizer in their cars and disinfecting wipes for their carts, nervously working to keep social distancing while navigating the scarcely stocked aisles of overwhelmed food stores and big box behemoths, delivering packages, groceries and to-go meals to doorsteps often now with only a texted photograph as proof. Shoppers and delivery drivers have quickly found themselves on the front lines of the coronavirus crisis as hundreds of thousands of people across Massachusetts keep to their homes and restaurants and bars temporarily barred from in-person dining turn to take out and delivery.

For those who rely on shopping and driving as their primary or secondary sources of income, it’s a calculated risk: potential exposure to the virus versus being unable to pay their bills in a time of increasing economic strife. But it’s also rewarding — a chance to help those in need.

“I’m obviously still more concerned than I was a week ago,” said David Fournier, 47, of Andover, an independent contractor for food delivery service DoorDash. “But everyone’s doing their part. I’m glad I’m able to keep doing this because it’s an income coming in for me.”

Phil Sullivan of Millis, an independent contractor for Shipt, has been spending hours inside the Westwood store fulfilling 10 to 18 orders a day. “The orders have been nonstop ever since the chaos last Thursday when everyone started panic-shopping,” Sullivan said. Orders spiked to upward of 300 at any given time late last week, several shoppers said, though they’ve now fallen down to 30 or 40. After completing 100 orders over the past two weeks, Sullivan said he’s down to 60 in the past week. Fournier, too, is seeing his orders ebb. “It’s been a lot harder than it normally is because things have been selling out so much faster,” Sullivan said.

Like Fournier, the 40-year-old Sullivan has developed a hygiene routine that includes washing his hands when he enters stores, wiping down his carts and avoiding busy aisles until they’ve cleared out. Ari Herzog, who currently works with Amazon and Shipt, is advocating for dedicated hours for delivery shoppers, similar to “senior hours” many chains have put in place to allow those most at risk for COVID-19 to move more freely through stores.

https://www.bostonherald.com/2020/03/21/shoppers-and-delivery-drivers-on-the-front-lines-of-the-coronavirus-crisis-in-massachusetts/