As of recent, we have seen a rapid growth in popularity for Gig Economy and businesses using this type of contract technique as the process for work within the future. Although Gig Economy’s popularity is on the increase, it does beg the question as to whether a lack of job security and fewer benefits compared to full time workers is worth businesses fully endorsing this opportunity.
What is ‘Gig Economy’?
Gig Economy is a form of employment in which temporary positions are available and businesses contract work with independent workers for short-term projects or tasks. Here businesses tend towards hiring independent contractors, workers and freelancers instead of initially hiring full-time employees for completing a task/project. Instead of businesses employing people to work under a contract of employment and receiving steady salary incomes, the independent gig workers would receive one-off payments for individual tasks. Workers who identify themselves as working within the gig economy system would usually find their jobs by signing up for what it is that they want to do in particular by using smartphone apps and websites.
Benefits
The Gig Economy process can be beneficial for a number of reasons. It argues the case that this type of employment enables more people to participate in the working world as it provides flexible work and also provides multiple opportunities for people who are unemployed. It also benefits businesses on a greater scale as well as individuals because it allows better availability and accessibility of services whilst also offering improved matching that fulfils both the business and the individuals specific needs. The main benefit for businesses will be minimal cost as the people the business employs aren’t on full-time contracts, meaning that because their contracts are short-termed, they can pay them accordingly to projects instead of having a fixed salary. However, this type of work contract comes with its limitations and has caused controversy along the way with its extreme lack of employment protection for those who choose to fully embark with this type of employment.
Limitations
Many individuals who operate under the Gig Economy contract are fearful and have concerns over their job security and their low and unreliable levels of income. In addition to this, those working within the Gig Economy do not enjoy the same rights and protections that full-time employed workers receive. There is also the problem of inconsistent employment due to the fact that employment is rarely guaranteed from businesses, meaning employment is highly unreliable and the stream of projects to work on can therefore sometimes be inconsistent. Furthermore, like self-employed individuals, gig workers have to rely on themselves to monitor, track and pay their own taxes instead of a business doing it for them. This can cause major difficulty for gig workers as they could be working on more then one job at different sectors and at different times, making it extremely difficult for them to monitor individually.
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