Instawork
Reviews and Complaints

My name is OG and I worked for insta work for 2 months received platinum status and they just showed there true intentions they are lazy out there in San Francisco, CA they suspended for no reason took my status and just now took my shift and I'm not the only person who is being treated this way I wouldn't recommend them to no one and I'm not mad upset,but I know when it's a dead rat around?

Hello

I have a question. I m not sure where to go from this. I have been with Instawork since 2019. Recently, my jobs have been canceled by them due to a required background check that I was unaware of. I have been working at the same job location for almost three months. The customer requested me to work at this specific location. So I contacted Instawork and waited five days for them to respond. Meanwhile, all five of my jobs were canceled by the system. Instawork was unaware of this because, in their response, they sent me a new link to complete my background check. Rather than to let me know before through email, text, etc, about completing a background check before working with the company again. So I lost five days' worth of income. It's tough in Seattle already, and this situation is a hugh blow with my housing situation. Is there anything I can do about this. I'm extremely upset about this. I've attached some images related to my situation.

Thanks.

Hi all, my name is Eric Washington. I’m an alumni of Marquette University and currently live in the state of Illinois. I found Instawork as a means to supplement income to eventually become primary income in hopes of this helping me to deal with and gain cash due to a current ongoing court case I have which makes it difficult to get quality jobs that I seek. When I found Instawork, I found it to be a safe haven. I passed the initial background check and began work. My first job was with an warehouse company to which I successfully completed with no hiccups and was approved by my supervisor for the hours I completed. A couple days later, I applied for another job thinking this too be an reliable income. I was incredibly wrong. After I was ready to work for my second job, Instawork runs THE SAME BACKGROUND CHECK ON ME THAT I PASSED THE FIRST TIME, and then tells me I am facing pre adverse actions due to my court case which will be over in February 2023. I told them that’s fine and even explained PERSONAL DETAILS to the case to which they recommended rehab treatment as a means to getting the court case removed off my record or possibly probation. Understanding that, they completely ignored me. Is it legal for them to take your wages away for what you worked? I caused no trouble whatsoever to which I have evidence from the employeer to back me since it was completed. What I thought Instawork was, came to the realization it wasn’t. Please, if you have any pending court cases, DO NOT WORK FOR Instawork. Even if you do, to me, they are not a moral system to work for in the first place. It’s like they use you and then get rid of you when they don’t get what they want.

This company is extremely dishonest when it comes to their professionalism. They pride their self on not disqualifying individuals based on their background and how they accept and openly allow felons to work but then pick and choose as to what and who they allow.

They told my cousin, who chose to engage in a background check for a specific employer on the platform that he could no longer be partnered in working with Instawork due to a failed background check which consisted of 2 pending criminal convictions. The same 2 pending criminal convictions that never led to a conviction which also were the same 2 pending criminal convictions that were approved and obviously allowed him to work on the platform. I don’t understand how they told him "with careful consideration they had to deactivate his account." As if the same careful consideration is what allowed him to work. This is plain foolishness. Just because he did not supposedly qualify to work for a certain yet specific employer on the app does and should not deem him as an not acceptant candidate to continue working on this platform how he originally was doing so. He was already working on this platform for 3-5 months when he openly chose to engage in deciding to do another background check for an employer at a baseball stadium. This was not a random background check. They want to make it seem as if they did a high security check and found something new on the behalf of his background but that was not the case nor is it.

The same pending charges on his background check that led to his account being deactivated were the same prior pending charges that were seen in the background check which gave him permission to work.

I really like this app and the concept of it and have made pretty decent money so far using it. My problem however is the punishments. I booked a multi day shift with a local factory. I worked every day, was there on time and did a great job. The last 2 days of the 10 day shift I missed due to having the flu (didn’t know it was the flu at the time). The first day I woke up and felt sick but still tried to make it and just physically couldn’t so I canceled the shift. The second day I woke up throwing up and running a fever. I cancel the shift and appeal the suspension. “To be fair” they couldn’t accept my appeal even though I told them I was sick the day before and that day. The factory I was working at was a seafood factory….can’t work around food sick! My account is suspended for a week. I now can’t see the shifts I had booked already prior to the suspension but also don’t see them as being canceled. Can’t reach out to anybody because I just keep getting a “Try Again” message. So I was suspended for having the flu. Any other job I would have called out and had to submit documentation. They however decided I shouldn’t be able to book anymore shifts for a week because I’m sick. Sorry I didn’t know I would get sick when I booked the shifts 2 and 1/2 weeks ago. They need to redesign their punishment system. Also they marked me as a no-show so I can’t get any badge levels next month. A 7 day suspension wasn’t enough? I mean my parents didn’t even punish me this much as a child yet and app not only took away my ability to work for 7 days but also took away my ability to be rewarded for all of the shifts that I worked again BECAUSE I HAVE THE FLU?!? Please revise your punishment system because the is ridiculous

This app is great compared to competitors. Finding work is pretty simple and the hours/pay is straight forward. There’s always a follow up confirmation before your shift which is great. You get paid bi weekly because it takes a few days for payment to clear, it’s not weekly. THE APPS TRACKING IS COMPLETE TRASH. it doesn’t work and crashes your phone doesn’t matter android or iPhone (I’ve swapped phones and have the same problems). EVERY single one of my shifts, I have messaged a complaint since this issue lowers your ratings which will reflect on you losing opportunities to be paid more. Their resolution is auto response with basic trouble shooting that doesn’t help since it’s an app issue. Another issue I’ve discovered is HORRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE. I ran into a problem with the tracking again and the app had marked me as “no show” on my shift even though I took a screen shot of my location/time and the managers had emailed them that I had worked my shift and I did not get paid for it as well! This caused me to lose all my booked shifts and banned me til the beginning of next month. A few days of trying to follow up and Still no reply besides an auto bot response “replies within 2 hours” (it’s been 6 days..) The customer service is horrendous, there’s no way of contacting them besides message/email. I hope they fix this all the bug issue and create a hot line you can call for customer service because I do believe this app has great potential. So, Unless you’re really desperate for a job, I’d suggest researching and trying out another app before using this one because if anything were to go wrong with your scheduling, payroll/earnings, or if you’re injured on the job. You’re going to play a cat and mouse game trying to reach support that can take upto weeks..

I haven’t gotten many gigs from them and I do see similar jobs that are available on Wonolo, workright and other gig apps. It’s unique in the way that it allows you to be interactive and a little more involved. So I do appreciate the personal touch as I think in the long run, that’ll be beneficial to obtaining more jobs. But to anyone looking to download this and work same day, try Wonolo or a food delivery service! More of a long term invest and takes some time to get started. I like how personal they are when applying for certain positions, they have someone specifically go over your work experience to see if you’re the right fit for the job. As well as make that job category available for you for future jobs. Also writing this to hopefully get some sort of incentive as they asked me to write a review and screen shot it. I hope this helps! Good luck and work hard!

Also their pay is a lot higher than most other gig apps you just have to be timely on accepting them.

Tip for Instawork Developer: maybe give workers an idea of the potental they have to obtain that job same day while being on a waitlist. For example let us know “ you’re 67th in line, would you still like to reserve this job” and make the list visible and give us the option to opt out so others can move up if we don’t want the job. Maybe we were just really in need and something else came up. Good idea because a lot of these jobs are accepted last minute and want to be filled and worked asap.

Also I’ve had issues where I’ve accepted a job and just adds me to a waitlist ^ it’s frustrating seeing a job available and then it’s just taken away instantly like maybe have an option to see how many positions are available for that company and job. Just a suggestion! I know it’s easier said than done! Hope my UX input has changed your perspective! Other than that it’s really intuitive and unique from other apps. 10/10 for instanwork.

I worked for Instawork for about a year and a half, and the last couple months the company and the app have completely failed me. First of all let me say when I first signed up to be a Instawork employee (independent contractor ) I loved the concept of the flexible shifts that paid what I had thought was competitive hourly wage for the work that was expected. I had even moved across the country and still stayed loyal to the company and was grateful that I was able to do that.Thats when my record got destroyed by the app and the general incompetence of the support team, who do not give you support in real time, you messages then and than they message you back with a solution when ever they read your messages and respond. The few goodbsupoirt people do, the rest will respond with some response that they repeat from a all ready formulated responses, which sometime are helpful to your situation but usually not even close. Like if you tell them you can't clock in they will send you the policy on resdjusting your hours, but that policy only works with those people that had the ability to clock in. If you get a no show but you proved you were there they leave the no show on your personal record so you look unreliable. In addition to that until you prove you were at work they already take away ALL of your shifts, so even when the burden of proof is left on you and you jump through hoops to prove your telling the truth the entire time, your shifts for the month are already gone since when you lost them other people got them. There's more drama- check out my next low review I give them tomorrow as right now they owe me several hours pay at $24.00 an hour but are conveniently saying I was a no show so they don't have to pay me. Also I'll be making a you tube channel exposing many of these gig apps so I'll leave the info and links for that here that way you don't have to lose money like I didInstawork if you read this shame on you!

First and foremost I love the fact that I can work on my time and not be chain and balled to only one company. As someone who has worked as an employee and tried the whole work my way up the corporate ladder Instawork has allowed me to make my money in my time and my way for my business I am running. The only downside to this is cancellations you make before a shift starts way before the 24hour deadline. If you cancel a shift well before the 24 hours you should not be punished or have all the rest of your shifts removed. It’s a little contradicting that if you cancel responsibly and they say a shift can be covered if posted 24 hours before a job is starting or requested then why can’t Instawork not punish or take the remainder of the shifts. There should be an option to cancel with no consequences if you cancel let’s say 24-48 hours before a shift starts, and the reason I say that is because I sometimes see a shift later on down the road that is either closer to me or even pays more but because I get punished I can’t cancel and book that gig cause it will hurt my rating. Other than that it works great and if they decide to update that policy I would greatly give 5 stars!

Update 10/29 it’s gotten worse : (would not recommend to a friend , as a matter of fact I’ve recommended two family members and never received my referral money)
The customer service response is delayed and some of the representatives are rude, using words such as “refrain” from messaging us so many times when I never did all at once. I had gold for two weeks and immediately saw a decline in jobs after my gold profile was revoked for no reason at all. There payment system is out of date for example once your payment is processed it scares you by telling you it won’t be processed for another pay period or so. When asking to speak to a manager or someone live all I ever get is an automated response or a template that they use which is obvious and does not answer my questions.

Hi, if I’m honest… I worked for Instawork last summer and I worked a few shifts, maybe like 10 or a little over. I had an situation where I found myself at the same company, but the wrong location and was suspended because I didn’t show at the next location because it was dishwashing service on a boat and boats take off at a certain period of time. I had the first company call the second one that I missed and they said they didn’t even need me. So I canceled, I was suspended and $800 worth of shifts was taken off about three days later. I said “fine,” and I did do work somewhere else, but every time I try to do any future work with Instawork they just leave me on hold. When my week long suspension was over I was placed on low performance because so many previous shifts I worked said that my internet connection was low, and they had issues tracking me yet I clocked in and clocked out and was definitely at each shift. I had no idea this was going to show up on my profile. Months later I tried to work at Instawork again… I even applied for the $250 bonus money because my permanent job was referred to me by Instawork, I placed my pay stubs and everything, got nothing. I signed up for a coach call after I left my permanent job and they didn’t answer, not even the second time I applied. So then I reapplied for the next week, got a call from someone finally! Did an interview where they asked for my background that I already had up on my profile and when it was all said and done, I was disapproved for every single new shift application. I get no jobs yet I see the section that says “100+ jobs for dishwasher or event server was given out last week.” I see no work opportunities on my profile! Im frustrated with Instawork, very frustrated and I don’t know why I feel it tries to weed me out. The interview I did was like a week and a half ago and it sounded great but I’ve been disapproved for everything and that was the time for them to give me feedback rather than diss me like this

So my experience with Instawork I can’t say is good or bad. Mainly because I have been with them since 2019. And the very very few experiences I have had from work some were good some were bad. Then the app itself overall not very good I don’t know if the update messed the app up or what but for some reason I had the worst experience with the app today. I clocked in everything was fine and when it came down to clock out the app didn’t work it signed me out on top the code I got to clock out didn’t work. And if I am right that has to be apart of the update this clock in code and clock out code what a waste. I was stuck trying to clock out until I got over it. Then when you complain about having issues with the app they never responded? Like never actually respond! Lucky for some reason it finally clocked out on it own but those tiny issues right there. And thanks to Instawork I had almost lost a job I had book myself for after the gig that was giving clock out problems. Lucky I know the supervisor from my next job from another company. The point is hey I arrive way early the app don’t give proper direction the app won’t let you clock out and they don’t give you the breaks you are to be giving at all. So I was a little upset with the app and hopefully just hopefully they fix these bugs ASAP. Other then that y’all get y’all some gigs in not very much heavy work, and speak up on your breaks because if you don’t they will over work you and not give you your breaks. For someone like me I have to have my breaks for health issue. I have to take medication for my asthma and etc, but other then that stay on top of the legal information and just don’t get played in the long run. Because when the app mess up due to these bugs and etc they will suspend your account. So speak up show them your speaking up helps to show them your a serious worker and you should be fine over all. Anyways I hope this information helps someone. And also helps the app fix the issues they need to fix other then that good luck instaworkers and hope to see you new workers very soon.

Instawork has been a blessing for me but when I started it was very cutthroat and over competitive. It’s evened out and that’s great except for one thing I have experienced. Working at a business that regularly requests your presence via text request suddenly for seemingly no reason my gig dropped off my screen although it was confirmed. I put up a fit and would not take the “sometimes you and a business aren’t a good fit explanation”eventually someone called me and they agreed that it seemed odd that they were requesting me 5-6 days a week with no problems or incidents for like a month and a half.
I’m now a shift lead and am watching this same game being played with more than one of my professionals in the past few months . Whoever is reporting the Instawork professional should HAVE to give their name and must call from a phone associated with their account. They should also not be able to be completely shielded and anonymously reporting Instawork professionals by phone.
I am shift lead if the business is having issues or a professional is having issues that’s why I’m there to advocate for these people and assure that they are treated fairly as well not being turned off like a light switch with no explanation or way to dispute it. We know when our shift drops 20 hrs out and we don’t get paid there is a huge problem. I flew back from boston to Florida for a shift I took and even confirmed it it disappeared from my application with no record. Same with everyone else this has happened to the count at one business doing this is 5 people were just chopped off like I described. I’m the only person that was angry enough to send 20 emails and 20 in app help requests some phone calls. Lots of people are very embarrassed that they did something wrong.
I’ve seen people do things wrong some of the people are being picked off by employees because it’s anonymous if you are an employee of the business you should not get that luxury. It breeds corruption in some people who decide they want someone gone
Please fix this problem! Real reasons why decisions have been made it’s disheartening

For an independent contractor, this company is flourishing well into Mother’s milk. Pay rate may fluctuate per gig due to an individual's skills & the sky is the limit! You can wear 50 different hats with this company as long as you have your certifications, your uniform & equipment, show up on time & do your job! You could be a server one day & a cashier the next, a bartender one evening & a prep cook the following afternoon. It’s all up to you and your drive. The app is clean, easy to understand, & has yet to glitch (hooray!). I want to look at a month's layout in the future, but for now, seeing gigs available by date with scroll down is fine. Before a scheduled gig starts, it reminds you of the start time. The details for the gig are all provided; date/time, location, uniform & or equipment requirements to work the gig & where to park if you have a vehicle. The app allows employers to favorite you or for you to favorite them after you've completed a gig. You can even ANONYMOUSLY rate your coworkers for their good or bad performance, as well as give kudos to those who worked well throughout the shift. Never again deal with people who don’t get reprimanded for not doing their job, nor will you bear the weight of someone calling you a snitch or a goodie two shoes again! You can also add favored coworkers to your network because that's how excellent teams are made! There are achievement badges you can earn, and there is even a points system to help you stay on track. You can learn new skills by using their training courses and assessment quizzes to help you reach your highest potential. The app stores all the gigs you’ve done, your earnings, and all the future gigs you’ve got coming up.

Pros:

Choose your days and shifts, Freedom to choose multiple jobs regardless of titles; App is very user-friendly, Anonymous evaluations are a godsend.

Cons:

Gig availability is first-come, first-served, some gig locations are very far away, and you may need a vehicle, carpool, or taxi to get there & definitely for when you leave if it's a late shift because Metra & Pace stop running at different times after sundown in the suburbs surrounding the Chicagoland area.

This app has the possibility to bring a lot of opportunities and pretty dang good pay. The people I’ve met working through this app are great. HOWEVER. Their policy on reasons for missing work or miscommunications and their appeal process is absolute garbage. They can change you from a paid back up to no longer a paid back up without even notifying you.I was a paid back up and had talk to my supervisor one night asking him if I was just able to give them a call an hour before my shift started the next day because that’s the way the gas prices are these days it would be a bummerTo drive 40 minutes out of my way just to be told I wasn’t needed for a shift and he said that calling in would be fine. When I called the next day I was told that I was not needed for the shift. However when I went on the app to figure out how to get this communicated or if there was a certain process of doing this I have noticed that I was no longer a paid back up. I called the business again and they told me that I shouldn’t worry about it and that they were not going to mark me a no-show or anything derogatory on their end and that everything should be fine. Everything was not fine and that is exactly what happened. I got marked as a no-show. Which suspended my account for a week meaning that not only did I get canceled from the shifts I already had booked but I could no longer book shifts for a week as well. And took my opportunity to make top pro bonuses for a long period of time. I tried consistentlyTry communicating with people doing see communication for Instawork and I got absolutely nowhere every time I tried to write back to a message I would end up speaking to a different person and all that happened was I keep getting told the same thing over and over again.They told me to appeal Insta works decision and that’s exactly what I did but at 3 o’clock in the morning they denied my appeal without even communicating with the business to see if what I had told them was what I said. They refuse to answer your questions and I can almost guard they’ve never approved an appeal before. It’s ridiculous. If they could just get that stuff straightened out then this could be a 5 star app all around.

This is truly the worst “gig app” ever. Reason being that it is not a gig app. You have to get approved for every job. You have to put in your relevant work experience. Which makes this not a gig app.

There isn’t a list of available gigs. You have to click on every single possible job only to tell you that nothing is available. But first you have to fill out your relevant work history to get approved. But even if you do there aren’t jobs available.

You can’t upload a profile photo. And you can’t take a photo in the app. They have a system where you have to follow their photo prompts that tell you to look straight then look left. Then while you are looking left they are telling you further instructions which you cannot see because you are looking all the way to the left as they requested. You don’t even know when they are going to take a photo of you during all of this so you end up in the middle of something while it is taken.

The support team is pointless. They should just have a Q & A because all the support team does is send you a copy pasted message. There is literally no conversation at all with support. They send you a copy pasted response and they close the chat. They don’t let you say anything or explain anything. Literally they copy paste and close the chat. Worthless. I even opened another support request saying that I received a copy pasted message that didn’t address the issue and the guy said it wasn’t copy pasted. It was literally a company written message that all the support people use. It was a scripted, very long and drawn out response that you would find in a company Q & A page. No way the guy wrote that on the fly like that. So they aren’t even honest.

This is by far the worst gig app of all time. Don’t waste your time. If you are willing to do this app then just go get a job. It’ll be way better than this. Besides nothing is available.

It’s called “Instawork” but you have to apply with your work history to get accepted for a job. Does that sound like “insta” to you?

They promote that this is not like typical job sites or traditional job hiring. But it is. They are literally asking you for your related work history and approve you or else you can’t do the gigs. So they sell you on what they don’t do but then do what they are telling you they don’t. So compromised.

I registered for my second gig 5/16. I received a second first time gig text to speak with me via phone on 5/13. As the call proceeded it felt like an interview where I was asked to define terms. No matter, I continued the call still stating along the way this was not my first gig. I received texts and checking in notifications every day until 5/16. My third gig 5/18 after following all the steps to confirm a weeks worth of gig during the COVID19 pandemic - while on the train to my gig I received more text to confirm the gig. Then, to confirm tracking. The app is tracking and telling me how many miles away you are the entire time. Meanwhile, Instawork personnel’s texted me over an over saying I’m not tracking and cancelled the gig, while in route. NYC trains are not 100% cellphone connectivity underground. The connection comes and goes. I explained this via text and mentioned the repeated texting and checking was unnecessary. However, others are checking in and leaving the job site as soon as they get there. I make it to job site 30min early and completed the gig. The manger dismissed everyone early giving us the code to punch out however, at 1:05pm I received 10 messages. Some stating a new start time for the remaining weeks gigs and one welcome to Instawork message “you are now able to book your first gig” when this is gig 3. I attempted to use the code to punch out but was prompted to pay $30 for a background check. At gig 3 this felt absolutely like profiling. As well as being singled out for requesting to receive less check-in notifications. All the remaining gigs were cancelled by personnel. While working, the other teammates were not receiving these messages as my phone was the only phone constantly pinging. The tracker in the app as well as the app does all the work, you job is to show up, work and complete the jobs. Personnel makes it difficult to focus and do that by not having updated information. Not worth the drama, fees or headache. I also agree with other gig workers about notifications as I’ve received text saying I’ve been requested and after clicking through about 10 questions to hit book gig, the gigs are gone. I also worked 8 hours with no break and mentioned it several times due to COVID19 there is no air conditioning so i perspired 8 hours straight only to here the site didn’t want Instaworks help. I was very disappointed.

First gig app I have signed up for & I’m so glad I did! Amazing work opportunities. I have been struggling to find a regular w-2 job I felt comfortable committing to daily after having lost my Warehouse Manager job & later my vehicle due to COVID. This app is a life saving miracle and I’m only upset I didn’t sign up sooner. I had been skeptical about gig/freelance sites after reading about a few of them a while ago on different blog sites, I had wrongly assumed that they were all too good to be true & that there would be more workers then jobs listed so the competition would make landing any job nearly impossible. Man oh man, I was wrong! As a manger before Covid, temp agencies were the place to go for extra labor on demand however it was not cost effective and the process was almost always poorly set up & manage, leading me to end up short on workers last minute and without notice. Instawork’s app is extremely user friendly and the process of applying and booking a shift is streamlined and straightforward. Everything you need to know is on the job listing before having to book so to minimize surprises and/or your need to have to cancel last minute. There is plenty of job opportunities and the compensation is extremely fair and generous! No surprises at all! I have yet to work my first shift as I just booked one for tomorrow however I find it exciting how they rank you based on your experience/rating with them and how you can unlock even better and more permanent opportunities as you work more with Instawork. This is great because I was able to start booking within an hour of creating my account; as I said, everything about this app has been thought through and streamlined to prevent any mishaps and to get you working asap, which is what I desperately needed. I plan to commit to as many shifts as I can and save up for a car so that I can then seek better job opportunities and not be limited by transportation. With the variety of shift locations and hours, I can find work to fit my availability as it changes. Oh, and we can’t forget the instant payout! No need to wait two weeks to reap the rewards of my work. *be mindful! Instawork has a very high standard and don’t tolerate any excuse for no shows/cancels. The reason they are so easy to work with and pay so well is because they do have expectations of you & they don’t settle for less. So if you are unsure you can make it to a shift, don’t even try to book it because they are not forgiving if they are left hanging when they expected you to show up.This app has literally saved me from an irreversible financial crisis as I was out of all other options to get back on my feet. Thank you Instawork! You’ll be getting 110% from me!

I worked one of there sites ISS IKEA. The first few days were fine, I did my work, and the even wanted me to stay overtime. One of the supervisors started to touch me inappropriately and make me uncomfortable, so much that I asked my husband to work the same site. The same day my husband came in, the same supervisor kept telling my husband to go home early, because “he wasn’t working”, but he was working and he was the only person assigned that assignment, you could clearly see through cameras that he was working. Then he started to harass me claiming I wasnt doing my work either. I wasn’t doing anything different from the first days I was there. Everyday my husband came in he would start being unprofessional with the both of us. I was doing my work. Even the other employees were seeing the problem. He even scared another employee and made her uncomfortable on how on top of me he was because I was clearly working. There were people on the clock hiding and not working making work much more default for the other employees that are actually working. One day I was doing carts in 90 degree weather and I had to get something to drink, I was out there for more than 4 hours, and he started yelling at me even though I didn’t even take my break. When I got back he was yelling at my husband to clock out and that he wasn’t coming back to that location. He did this in front of the head supervisor who I complained to about his behavior serval times. The head supervisor was checking on us here and there, he saw we were doing our work. The last time I complained They said they had to take his side over mine because I was just a temp. I even told them to check the cameras and I would like to have a sit down with the two head supervisors and the one that was harassing me. They refused to do so. The supervisor that was harassing me end up blocking my husband from the site. The next day that I go to work without my husband, he is following me around every where and telling me how prefect of a job I’m doing. I was still not doing anything different from when I started. He would always go in the male bathrooms when I was cleaning it, I had the sign up that I was in there, the same sign that he told me to put up so men would not go inside while I’m in there. I reported this to Insta work a few times, all they could do was block me from the site. I feel so violated and helpless. That was the most convenient place for me to work. It was 10 mins from my home. Everything else was an hour or some change. Now I have to look for work much further away, and nothing happened to the supervisor. I honestly think the head supervisor knew what was going on and turning a blind eye. I hope he doesn’t do this to someone else

This is the first review I’ve felt compelled to leave on an app I’ve downloaded, and hope it can be helpful for others out there. At the end of last year, I quit my job of 8 years in an industry I was in for 10+. Like so many other Americans, I have been trying to find work, and was recommended to try this app. The process seemed practical enough, and provided options both within and out of your interests. I started looking in some skilled job positions, to which prompted me to include all my contact info, get 2 recommendations, and take assessment quizzes before being able to apply (fairly standard). I sent recommendations to some peers and a few precious colleagues for the company I left. As part of the previous companies policies, they do not allow personal references— questions about employment must be redirected to Human Resources, and they will only be able to confirm if an employee is working/had worked for them. Therefore, anonymity is important for my mentors and colleagues who are still employed. The recommendation portion requires individuals to provide all contact info— name, title, work phone number/address, etc. To no jeopardize someone else’s job, I was only able to obtain personal recommendations (friends). After my recommendations were done, I waited for everything to clear so I could apply to these jobs. And waited. A week later I am still being shown that I need 2 recommendations before I can apply to these jobs. Confused, I reached out to customer care (which in and of itself was frustrating to toggle through as it gives options for you to select from rather than search by category or go directly to contact email). I had conversation with 3 different customer service reps, and not one of them were accurately answering my questions. Most replies were cut and pasted from their FAQs or a manual, skimming the topic of concern but not addressing what I was asking. One of my questions was if I cannot obtain professional recommendations, will I not be able to apply to skilled jobs? I was given the run around of “ It’s easy to have a friend say something nice about you, but in order to have valuable references, you should aim for managers and colleagues to write a nice reference for you specific to the job responsibilities. “. Only by the third rep were they able to say they only accept professional recommendations. I wish that had been something they made more clear and/or only gave the option for that. It’s frustrating as a capable worker to spend all this time and energy trying to utilize this app when their requirements are something you cannot ever meet based on your previous companies policy. If you cannot provide obtain professional recommendations without putting someone’s job at risk, like me, DO NOT USE THIS APP.

I can only speak for Chicagoland area. Do not waste your time. I am here at the location management does not have the clock in code Rohith from Instawork Thank you for contacting Instawork, and we are sorry to hear about your clock-in issues. We request you to reach out to your on-site supervisor/partner by clicking on the contact button on the app, then click on the dial button to initiate the call, the phone number is not visible for security reasons, but you should be able to reach out to them. If they are unresponsive, we request you to stay on-site for an hour & keep us updated after an hour! Please reach out to your supervisor so they can clock you in from the business app. If you need a 4 digit code, please reach out to your on-site supervisor listed in the shift details in the app. You can also click on 'Let us know you're on-site and can't get the code' to record the time you attempted to clock in so we can make sure your hours are correct. It is 12 am where I'm at. I'm unable to contact manager due to hours. I was told she will clock me in in the morning but if I wait that long it will affect my instant pay. I'm here you can call and check plus my gps shows. Rohith from Instawork Please ensure you have followed instructions mentioned on the shift, and did you receive a clock-in code? If you were able to reach out to your on-site supervisor/partner they should be able to clock you in manually for the shift. The supervisor is not here I was told by the front desk they would relay the message but I don't feel comfortable working knowing that it's a chance I will not be paid on time. If you are not willing to work the shift, we can remove you from the shift without any penalties. Please let us know & you can leave your shift location as you are not willing to work the shift. Can you please take me off of my future shifts here this is very frustrating for me because I will not be able to see or meet the supervisor that's over this because of the hours I'm working and I had to trust that she would do what she needs to do on her end and I've never met her I've never experienced this with Instawork and this is very discouraging this can take 3 days or more. Rohith from Instawork we have blocked you from booking upcoming shifts with this partner, and you will no longer be allowed to book shifts in the future. Help Rohith understand how they're doing. This is one reason why I don’t like Instawork. They send u to these places you haven’t worked before and leave you hanging dry to deal with the rude and sassy Instawork chat people. So they block you from ever working there again and closed the chat.Love you like a ghetto experience and not getting paid them Instawork would be a great choice. Also would like to add that when I put in the adjustment a message popped up to say that it would be reviewed three days from now. Hope this helps.

So I work shift for Cort at venetian in Las Vegas nevada on Saturday 1/27/2024. After completing my shift day after it showed in my earnings 7 hour and 15 minutes. 530am to 115pm. After a couple I checked my earnings again and had seen that my hour were adjusted to 0 hour work so I end up not getting paid for that shift. I had contacted instawork and it has been 3 days now and still hasn't been fixed. I am extremely frustrated and mad about this. Really don't like fact that they can get free work out someone like that. I have prof of my location and timeliness of that day.

I booked a shift as a paid back-up and was sent home because i was not needed. Most times when you clock in as a paid back-up you are given two options to click on. 1. I was sent home because i am not needed 2. I am needed. I did get either of those options so i asked the person in charge if he would clock me out and he did at 10:05 pm. I should have been paid for four hours, but i did not see it in my earnings on the app. So, i sent a request in stating that i was a paid back-up for the shift. I got an email from instawork that the request was done, but still no earnings. Today my account was deactivated for something that i did not do. I have not ever done any of the things that are stated in their reasoning for the deactivation. I been using this app for years and the company that i was working for ghostline kitchens was intereseted in hiring me full time, i cannot complete my hours because of this deactivation.

Worked a shift a week ago on 10/28. On 11/3 Instawork deposited my money into a closed account instead of the one that I selected. I see the transaction and that I obviously failed, yet my other card on the account still has no money and no one has attempted to reach me. It’s going on 3 days I am waiting on a response from Instawork and I am now late on my rent. Horrible experience and this was my first booking ! I recommend bacon app for anyone looking for instant problem free money for working!

Worked at Salesforce in Atlanta Georgia on 09/13/2023. Was hired through Sodexo by Alma Cervantes... received a job offer from Alma through Sodexo, but at the last Minute Alma Cervantes mentioned that " They're using Instawork for a " Trial Period " while my background check was processing. Alma Cervantes allegedly" sent my Time in manually to Instawork " because my phone was down. First Alma Cervantes told me instawork don't have a phone number & she could only " email them". Then she mentioned all of the sudden that instawork " have a phone number" but refuses to give me the number to a person from instawork named " Daryl". I sent countless emails to instawork about my money...I verified everything that they needed & yet they refuse to pay me.

I booked a shift for today and it was taken from me saying I didn’t pass the background which i did and have proof of on Sept. 13. Everything came back clear so why would y’all take my shift and restrict me from future events? Thats so wrong. I was depending on the money especially since I had already booked and confirmed my shift. I reached out to customer service which was a joke and has not responded to me in 22 hours literally . I the called and was given a email that doesn’t work, reinstate me or im going to the DOL. I have proof that I booked and confirmed my shift, my background check completedand all

I was working at a job that I got through instawork I worked about 3 months total

For the same company instawork offers you a 250$ bonus if a company hires you permanently. Well I was hired on permanently sent instawork all my verification that was requested and then they said it would take 4 weeks which i wasnt happy about so i waited waited and waited never got my bonus yet my supervisor said they verified my employment to them already now i message them in the app cause they have no phone number u can call them they arent even responding to my text im pissed. I worked hard to get that bonus and they are screwing me this is [censored]

I showed up to work on time and my tracking informed me when I arrived. I repeatedly called Peter as to how to enter, but it was to no avail. When I finally made it Into the Bounce The Mall, I found Peter because a fellow coworker told me were Peter was. He proceeded to clock me in and asked me if I had shorts I could change into, I did amlnd he told me to back to my car and change into shorts. When I left he clocked me out and the time that he clocked me out at wasn't correct. My coworker that we both worked the emergency exits in the back in case a patent or child can't make it. I took my break after 2 oclock because Peter's responsibility was to come back and ask us which one of wanted a break first. I went first later than 2pm because Peter was no where to be found. Turns out he was hiding behind the big trucks making personal calls, which we were informed if they even saw our cell phone we would automatically sent home. I went on break and my coworker Juliana was calling me saying Peter was looking all over for me. She told him when on break but he sent me home because my break was literally 40 mins not 30 because I couldn't find parking and no provisions not even a granola bar was available for the staff. So reverse this suspension because I know almost half of the other Instas and they will all attest to the fact that I was there. Furthermore he came over to my work area and praised my work ethic. Also I was on break with Earl Nickerson and we were both cut short early but he is not marked a freaking no show! Reverse this now and Peter needs some discipline! showed up to work on time and my tracking informed me when I arrived. I repeatedly called Peter as to how to enter, but it was to no avail. When I finally made it Into the Bounce The Mall, I found Peter because a fellow coworker told me were Peter was. He proceeded to clock me in and asked me if I had shorts I could change into, I did amd he told me to back to my car and change into shorts. When I left he clocked me out and the time that he clocked me out at wasn't correct. My coworker that we both worked the emergency exits in the back in case a patent or child can't make it. I took my break after 2 oclock because Peter's responsibility was to come back and ask us which one of wanted a break first. I went first later than 2pm because Peter was no where to be found. Turns out he was hiding behind the big trucks making personal calls, which we were informed if they even saw our cell phone we would automatically sent home. I went on break and my coworker Juliana was calling me saying Peter was looking all over for me. She told him when on break but he sent me home because my breaks was literally 40 mins not 30 because I couldn't find parking and no provisions not even a granola bar was available for the staff. So reverse this suspension because I know almost half of the other Instas and they will all attest to the fact that I was there. Furthermore he came over to my work area and praised my work ethic. Also I was on break with Earl Nickerson and we were both cut short early but he is not marked a freaking no show! Reverse this now and Peter needs some discipline! And because I was marked a no show my account is currently suspended which means I can't book any shifts and the upcoming shifts I had booked were removed by Instawork.

On my earnings section of the app it shows I worked The Brand Ambassador shift on August 13th. So I was definitely there but there were adjustments made and in the end it says I earned no money. I wasn't paid for my time and to top it off my account is suspended and Instawork support still hasn't rectified the mistake as yet.

I worked for instawork as a bartender and Instawork has not paid me for my earned tips. I asked prior to starting the shift if there was going to be an issue with tips and the captain of the team stated no, that we would be paid our tips a week after our hourly rate. I even got a message stating that I received direct deposit on Friday (should have been my tips) and there's no deposits. I know that other employees have been waiting over a month for their tips

I had a gig on July 25. Bartender at DRV PNK Stadium. When I got there the manager Terry that works for DRV PNK Stadium was surrounded by many employees. Looked like they overbooked the employees and now she does not have where to place them to work. Eventually, she asked all of us to follow her through the stadium, she tried to find spots to put us to work and she prioritized her employees( understandable ) and the rest of us from Intawork we were told to go home and she apologized, also she said that by Instawork rules we gonna get paid the 4 h minimum. I drove 1h to get there and 1 h back, lost my day. Now, Instawork refuses to pay me the minimum 4 h. The reason is that I was late 15 min. Nobody mentioned anything about me being late, I was held there for approximately an hour trying to find a spot at a bar where I could work. Now Instawrok is using this excuse and doesn't want to pay me. If that is the reason ( being late) ,why I was not sent home right way? Why we all were held there. Why they also sent other bartenders home?

5/28/23 was hired to bartend an event. Instawork overbooked. I helped unload ice, liquor, soda, juice and mixers for 4 hours. Then the event captain from instawork did something on his app to allow me to clock out and then he clocked me out. The payment was processing and now it is disappeared. They said I have to verify I worked, but they make you turn on your GPS and pedometer to track your location in real time. They are refusing to pay me for traveling to napa and working 4 hours. They stole from me.

I had a shift at a company that I have worked at my than two a week just recently this past Sunday, yesterday I booked a paid back up for the same place and everything was good no further action needed on my end at all until I left this morning to head to the shift it disappeared!. I contacted Instawork and they stare I didn’t feel out a background check which I was never notified in the app or text, I check the app frequently for shifts so I would have seen something especially be a paid back up i check to see if it’s confirmed or not. They stated they can’t pay out the minimum 4 hours because it’s my fault which is incorrect I was never notified about need something additional from me. As a single mom I make my day around my child and work and to get up an the shift disappear is a real inconvenience

Today my daughter had a job in Dayton an hour away and her car broke down she tried to contact insta work he was in a dead zone she couldn't even call and get a rental car she couldn't even call me she got home it was pouring down rain she some guy pulled over and she got in the car with him she could be dead but now she came home and she tried to kill herself of taking all these pills cuz she's so sick as he deactive

I have been trying to speak to someone for three days . I have no money to live on because money I was supposed to get was withheld from me because supposedly I didn't work a shift back in April , which doesn't make sense because I have to get a number from the employer to clock in and out . I am literally going on a he kindness of strangers to get to work and I haven't eaten really anything in two days . I am so tired and hungry I don't know what to do . I even worked a shift on the forth so I could get paid after the shift but never happened in was not a W2 shift and still I cannot get a answer to anything.

On March 16th, I was at a job site and the app stopped working for me. The area had bad service which in turn turned off my ability to log in, clock in, and somehow turn off my location. And throughout the day, it would log me out again and again. This turned into the team lead clocking me in late at 9:51 AND taking an additional 27 minutes off of my time? I reached out to support and they denied my claim although I had an in-person conversation with this said lead. I pulled this woman to the side and expressed exactly what happened and her response was “I’ll take 30 minutes off the backend.” Absolutely not, I was there on time and worked until my shift was done. Not time should be removed, but added because of her lack of acknowledgment. So with that, I’ve reached out to apple to find out more on my significant locations and they weren’t able to help me. Instawork developers need to offer a solution to problems like this.

It’s frustrating that I’ve worked and I’m not getting paid for my work because of someone who is overwhelmed and entitled feels like it’s okay to not pay someone.

Overall, I’ve been using the app for over a year and it has done so much wonders to help me get by and to assist with my financial burdens. With instapay, getting paid after every shift has been a wonder to my days, especially with these hard times.

Pros:
- best wages for shifts and earnings rack up
- try and do everything type of labor
- getting a feel of every work style
- hands on with the everyday working class
- instapay to get paid after every shift
- top pro bonus to ensure you are the best and get a bonus wage

Cons:
- constant app bugs and jitters that ruin the experience
- many locations don’t have proper training programs and often times out you right in and expect you to be on top of your game
- customer service is very unhelpful, you’d be lucky if they can even fix anything at all
- be mindful of who you work with since many users are often major offenders and may harass you (especially towards women app users)
- instapay delay which makes you resent many work places due to dishonest employees
- companies hounding you for free labor (don’t ever work for free)
- constant racism in warehouse work
- female bartenders, be mindful of sexual harassment, you will get plenty of that