The Changing World of Work: How Jobs Evolve Over Time

“This morning, I saw a food delivery rider zipping through traffic — and it made me wonder: how did we arrive at this point?”

2025, 1st May - Labour Day In Malaysia

Taman perumahan, my residential area somewhere in Bandar Puncak Alam, is a rare quiet morning. The streets are calm; less morning rush than usual, the air still, and the only sound is the gentle creak of a ceiling fan mingling with the infrequent rustle of trees outside (not really, there's a padang right behind my house).

Coffee in hand, morning light streaming in, I take a moment to pause from the kitchen window. Often, I stand here before the day starts. From this point, I can see our main guardhouse - the entrance and exit point into my taman perumahan. It's a calm intersection of lives where neighbours, delivery riders, runners, and schoolchildren cross paths in their daily activities.

Today, it was a food delivery rider with a bag fastened or strapped to his back gliding past the boom gate, who caused me to stop a bit more at my window.

While many of us were resting due to the public holiday, he was on the job.

The meaning it carried, not the motion, caught me. That straightforward, daily scene turned into a contemplation: "What does it mean to 'work' today?"

From Fields to Freelancers: A Quiet Evolution

Not too long ago, work meant reporting to a factory, tapping rubber, going to ladang, going to bendang / sawah, or harvesting crops. It was physical, location-based, and survival-oriented.

Later came the office era: desks, files, timecards, and the 9-to-6 (except shift-based job) schedule. Monthly pay, yearly evaluations, and a feeling of stability defined this world I entered as a young man.

 But now, looking out my window and seeing someone make a living by using an app (mobile app to be exact), I came to realise something:

Work has outgrown buildings. It's flexible. It’s fluid. It adapts. It travels.

Change Doesn’t Always Roar - Sometimes It Whispers

Many people picture change as loud and disruptive. More often, though, it comes quietly.

Memos evolved into emails first. Meetings then became video conferences. People are now creating careers from their smartphones, tablets, or laptops—selling crafts, coaching online, delivering meals, reviewing items. Change is real without a bang to cause it. At times, it simply sneaks into our daily lives.

Though I still work under the framework of traditional employment, these subtle changes do not go unnoticed.

From this kitchen window - a simple view of my taman perumahan's guardhouse. It seem that I'm observing the waves of transformation in real time. People entering and leaving, life happening and work evolving. One delivery at a time.

Familiar Faces, New Paces, New Realities

The COVID-19 pandemic made us aware of the crucial part gig workers—delivery riders, runners, and service providers. Lim (2022) claims they became the lifeline when much of the country remained still.

Still lacking, though, are acknowledgements and protections. Amin (2023) questioned legal reform and dignity in these changing roles. Yet, in spite of these deficiencies, I find something strong: goal.

The delivery rider I saw this morning wasn't in an office suit or shirt, nor was he dressed in a tie. But he was purposeful in his motions. He was proud of what he was doing. Dignity comes from how you present yourself, not from your attire or place of employment. It comes from how you show up, and it derives from your presence.

Labour Day: A New Significance

Traditionally, Labour Day stands for workers' rights, job security, wages, and a public holiday. It still does, though.

But nowadays, it also stands for something more subtle:

• The will to carry on despite the hazy road ahead.
• The bravery to seek fresh sources of income.
• The silent pride in effort, regardless of the task title.

Where Did It All Begin?

Naturally, this shift didn't start now. It started long ago - with machines, with steam, with revolutions changing human labour.

Looking back - to the beginnings of work as we know it - will help us to really grasp the digital hustle and app-driven economy of today.

To really grasp and understand the digital hustle and app-powered economy of today, we have to look back to the roots of work as we know it.

Next in the Series:

Industrial Revolutions and the Birth of New Possibilities

From coal to code, let's retrace the arc and explore how every historical change still ripples through our contemporary life.

Citations:

Lim, L. L. (2022). Key workers in Malaysia during the pandemic (No. 81). ILO Working Paper.

Amin, N. S. M. (2023). BALANCING THE RIGHT OF GIG ECONOMY WORKERS IN THE CONTEXT OF COLLECTIVE BARGAINING. IIUM Law Journal, 31(1), 169-202.