I was recently chatting with a childhood friend on Facebook. She’s raising a kid, working part-time and trying to pursue dental assistant school. Life is a bit rough and her undergraduate student loans aren’t helping.

I checked out the potential earnings of a dental assistant in Portland to see if she was making a wise investment by pursuing dental assistant school. Average salaries were less than $40,000 a year with not a lot of upward mobility. The student debt she would take on to get the dental assistant credentials, combined with her undergraduate loans will probably be more than $40,000. That’s a recipe for student loan slavery.

She told me she doesn’t know what to do. She can’t keep working part-time forever and there are not many full-time jobs that would allow her to be in her kid’s life.

I can sympathize. It is very difficult to juggle family and work when you are a single mom. You have to be there for your kids while also maintaining an income to meet the bills. It can be a very stressful undertaking. This is even more magnified when you are doing it by yourself with no partner to lean on.

I told her about the on-demand economy (aka 1099 economy or gig economy) as an option to earn extra money on a flexible schedule so she can be there for her kids as needed. This new economy is creating ‘gigs’ that independent contractors can do to earn money at their convenience. And with time more and more people are getting involved with freelancing and independent contracting jobs. This segment of the workforce is helping spark the growth of food delivery startups like Caviar, Postmates, and DoorDash. This is becoming a very convenient option for single moms. It’s not the most lucrative line of work but it can help people in situations like my friend here.

Here are the reasons why I think single moms should consider working for an on-demand food delivery on the side to earn extra income:

Flexibility

These are the most flexible jobs that you will come across. You can be your own boss. Having the luxury to go on-duty and off-duty whenever you want allows you the flexibility to meet the needs of your kids. For example, if your child has a parent-teacher meeting at school, you can go off duty to attend it.

It Isn’t A Desk Job

Another very important aspect of a job like courier service is that this isn’t a desk-job. You may at times be bored with the periodic work at home, this job will give you opportunity to get out of the daily routine and be outside. You will enjoy being on the open road and being on the move all the time. It will also help you meet new people every day.

Bring Your Kid to Work

If you are using your car to deliver food, you can strap your kid into a car seat in the back and take them to work with you. I’m inclined to think if the customer sees that you got a kid in the back when you pull up to deliver them food, they might give you a nice tip. #ProTip

Exercise

The food delivery gig can be a form of exercise. This is especially true if you’re delivering on bike. Running up people’s doorsteps can burn some serious calories.

Work on the Weekend

For someone in my friend’s situation, maybe working on the weekend is something she’s willing to do but there aren’t enough opportunities. The good news is you can make decent money driving on weekends for on-demand food delivery companies.

Health Coverage

Part-time employees at most companies aren’t eligible for health benefits. For a long time, on-demand employees, classified as independent contractors, worked without health coverage afforded to them by platform they make money on. But now, with companies like Stride Health, and Beam Technologies, independence contractors and freelancers can get a health and dental plan.

Safer than Rideshare

For women, becoming a rideshare driver with Uber or Lyft isn’t safe. Women drivers have to deal with the potential risk of male riders making unwanted advances. With food-delivery, the only person in your car (or bike) will be you (and maybe your baby).