Digital platforms and technological services in global labour markets make it more efficient and cheaper for business and organisations to match gig workers to hire, temporary independent contractors and freelancers who are more flexible in their availability to take care of busier times or specific projects.
Airi Lampinen, who studies the social implications of digital platforms, believes that there are many challenges with how gig work arranges via digital platforms like apps, but also multiple benefits.
"The challenge with gig work in the platform economy is that workers often end up with the risks and responsibilities that the entrepreneur has, without gaining the personal freedom and power over the situation that traditionally comes to entrepreneurship."
Lampinen explains further that this is not a necessary feature of digital platforms, it is instead a question of what business models and ethical choices businesses and organisations make.
"There are several opportunities with digital platforms too. These platforms may provide easier access to work for individuals who struggle to find employment via other channels, and for those who cannot or do not want a full-time position or want to work remotely or from home."
Airi Lampinen is the co-writer of a recently published research article about the mobile workforce and Uber. The paper discusses how apps not only manages the allocation of work but is directly involved in changing the labour conditions of the work itself and how Uber driving demands new skills such as emotional labour, while increasing worker flexibility. Click here to read the paper: "Designing for Labor: Uber and the On-Demand Mobile Workforce".