See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/340583864

What is the Gig Economy?

Article · April 2020

CITATIONS READS

2 5,943

1 author:

Boidurjo Rick Mukhopadhyay

Southampton Solent University
395 PUBLICATIONS   182 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

East and Central Asia: Business and Society View project

Development and Environmental Economics View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Boidurjo Rick Mukhopadhyay on 16 November 2021.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

To cite this article: Mukhopadhyay, B.R. and Mukhopadhyay, B.K. (2020). What is the Gig Economy,
Tripura Times, Editorial, 12th April

To cite this article: Mukhopadhyay, B.R. and Mukhopadhyay, B.K. (2020). What is the Gig
Economy, Tripura Times, Editorial, 12th April

What is the Gig Economy?

Dr. Boidurjo Rick Mukhopadhyay and Prof. (Dr). Bibhas K Mukhopadhyay

Some refers it as the ‘sharing economy’, whose a freelance basis, carrying out short-term jobs
projected growth is around $2.7 trillion by 2025. or contracts, to one or more employers. Some of
The concept of ‘contingent workforce them may rely on a website or app to help them
management’ is nothing new but has been find or organize their gig work, others may
reshaped by the introduction of ‘gig economy’. connect more with word-of-mouth in this
A ‘gig worker’ is someone who is employed on business of reputation.
To cite this article: Mukhopadhyay, B.R. and Mukhopadhyay, B.K. (2020). What is the Gig Economy,
Tripura Times, Editorial, 12th April

Gig economy workers can range from enforcement of employee laws and regulations
traditional independent contractors to to the gig environment. The risks that gig
freelancers and temporary staffing firm workers take not only relates to their labour but
employees who work for selected hours in a also to their own capital. Risk mitigation counts
week. A few examples of gig work that use when continued ownership of the assets used
platform websites are Uber, Swiggy, Zomato in work are dependent on a set of
in India similar to TaskRabbit, Lyft in the US, circumstances outside the control of the
configuring work to be broken down into worker. For example, Uber or Ola drivers use
components that allows tasks to be tailored and their own money, or borrow, to buy their cars.
allocated as required. Some may use gig work And, due to circumstances such as A) when the
to supplement the income they receive from a company changes the amount it pays to drivers
traditional job. or, B) when the ride-hailing industry
experiences higher competition, C) when the
In the US, research shows that at least one-third
company gets flooded with new Uber drivers
of the total workforce rely on gig economy
due to low barriers of entry and also growing
work as their primary source of income.
popularity amongst users – they might
Today, there is as many challenges for SMEs to ‘decommission’ certain drivers either due to
recruit part-time workers now as the many one or more of the above or also for securing

choices available out there for gig workers. The low user ratings – then the driver is burdened
recent resurgence of the gig economy could be with debt, with no ready means to pay it back.

seen as an extension of this attitude,

The platform providers ensure that their
supercharged by modern mobile technology –
workers are not classified as employees in any
in particular platforms such as Uber (global),
form- thereby freeing them from any liability of
Alibaba (China) and Deliveroo (UK/EU) which
providing entitlements to workers, driving up
connect gig workers with willing customers in
their costs. However, the gig ‘employees’ pay
exchange for a cut of the proceeds.
and provide for the physical assets that the
The top three rationale for businesses for platform relies on to carry out its business.
engaging ‘non-employee’ freelancers to work The key claim of the platform providers is that

with their internal teams are A) flexibility, B) their gig workers should be considered
access to expertise, C) speed, and D) cost. A independent contractors, not ‘employees’. The
survey by Deloitte in 2014 found that 51% of goodwill accrues to the platform provider,
executives surveyed expected the use of leaving the worker with fewer options.
contingent talent to increase in the next 3-5
Recently, the U.S. Department of Labour (DOL)
years. Temporary, irregular work ideally fits
established that many workers, depending on
those who are looking for extra money on the
contractual specificities, in the gig economy can
side or with ad hoc schedules, while also a big
be considered contractors when it comes to
demographics of the middle class that relies on
federal wage and hour regulations. Just as gig
gig work, cannot afford instability, and are not
working can increase one’s earnings to an
getting fairly paid for the amount of work they
unlimited degree, the opposite can also be true,
are doing.
as pay can vary drastically, and by no means
has a fixed minimum. Therefore, the ‘feast or
For several years straight, state legislatures and
famine’ style of income can be increasingly
government regulators have sought to apply
 To cite this article: Mukhopadhyay, B.R. and Mukhopadhyay, B.K. (2020). What is the Gig Economy,
Tripura Times, Editorial, 12th April

stressful; this fluctuation in earnings can make So far, there has largely been a lack of
it difficult to save for the future, which is protection for injured gig workers as they work
exacerbated further by not being entitled to any for ‘pay as you go’, ‘work more, get paid more’
retirement package or pension contribution. principles. There can be certain portable benefit
Then there is the formidable issue of no sick requirements, including workers’
leave – if gig workers are unable to work, they compensation insurance. Instead of replacing
simply do not earn. full-time employment with these fleeting roles,
companies could also think about making full-
Self-organisation and self-motivation are two
time employment more flexible itself, allowing
given requirements for one who is
full employees the freedom to work when and
entrepreneurial enough to take on a diverse
where they like without the risk of going
range of gig work, create a solid reputation,
hungry or homeless. There are examples where
ensure continuity of orders and therefore
it works, particularly tech giants and in sports
maintain flow of work. In the US, homicide
industry, but other sectors could design similar
rates among for-hire drivers are over 20 times
initiatives.
greater than for other workers. The
Occupational Safety and Health
Increasingly, some leading global corporations
Administration (OSHA) says the key risk
such as Google, UBER, and Facebook are
factors are working alone and in isolated areas,
beginning to recognise the gig workers as their
in high-crime areas, with people under
‘employees’. Gig economy work, with all its
the influence of alcohol.
pros, cons and debates – is exponentially
growing in both India and China as much as it
Gig economy drivers experience fatigue,
has been in the US and EU. However, the tact
pressure to violate traffic regulations and
with which emerging economies manage this
distraction from their phones.
trend should carefully curb the balance of
Musculoskeletal injuries are also common
externalities on the gig workers and platform
among for-hire drivers, including back and
providers. Simultaneously, we need to adapt
neck injuries from long hours behind the wheel.
our ideas of fixed employment to suit an
Companies that deploy couriers and
evolving digital age with a small portion of
messengers to pick up and deliver messages,
the market to work and earn as they wish. A
documents, packages, and other items also
big percentage of the ‘essential’ gig workers are
have turned to the gig economy trend of relying
currently out of work during the COVID-19
on temporary workers. Besides injury from
phase and companies need to consider
physical overexertion or repetitive manual
innovative ways to re-engage these workers
tasks, there are vehicle accidents, slips and falls,
and retain them when ‘normalcy’ (as we know
violence (including bullying and robbery),
it) returns.
there is exposure to extreme weather
temperatures, and also exposure to improperly
labelled hazardous chemicals.

View publication stats