Sidewalk Labs Wants More Precarious Work in Toronto
Google sister company projects number of freelancers to double
Sidewalk Labs wants to introduce the world to its vision of a city “built from the internet up” on Toronto’s waterfront. That vision includes new technologies that would make streets and public spaces more responsive to residents, all built on top of a platform that it would control, but what would such a city mean for residents? A section in the Request for Proposal outlines potential impacts to employment, and the details are troubling — not that Sidewalk would see it that way.
Referring to a feasibility study it performed on a “Tier 1 city” in the United States, which it says is comparable to Toronto, Sidewalk’s urban innovation platform would have “doubled the number of freelancers, primarily through a greater prevalence of non-traditional, flexible working arrangements.” Even though it was phrased as something Sidewalk has already achieved, it’s more an indication of what the company intends to deliver. For some reason, Silicon Valley loves precarious work.
Canadians might remember when finance minister Bill Morneau told young people that they should get used to jumping from “job to job to job” in 2016, echoing a similar support for the end of job stability, but the evidence is clear that precarious work is already having a very negative impact on a large number of people.
52 percent of workers in the Greater Toronto Area experience insecurity at work, and precarious workers say the biggest negative impact to their lives comes in the form of anxiety. Mental health problems are twice as likely among those in precarious work than people in stable jobs, and it’s not just because of income. A study showed that “low-income workers in stable jobs were found to report better mental health than higher-earning individuals in precarious jobs.” Having that stability is incredibly important.
The effects of depression and anxiety often linger throughout one’s life — Swedish research found a “scarring effect” on young people — and can manifest into physical health problems. And even though Canadians have universal health care, there are a number of services not covered by public insurance that are often included in private plans provider by one’s employer, which precarious workers rarely receive.
But the issues of precarious work are not just related to health. The Globe and Mail spoke to a self-employed woman who said that “erratic earnings have wreaked havoc with her life” and she would take a stable job “tomorrow” if the right one came up. The unpredictability of income is a factor here, but workers in insecure positions also earn up to 46 percent less than their counterparts in stable jobs, plus they don’t get vacation pay, sick days, and other benefits.
For some reason, tech companies valorize precarious work under the guise of “freedom,” when it’s really making workers unwell, poorer, and leading them to have far less life fulfillment. There are a small number of people who benefit from these work arrangements, but not nearly the number that are forced into precarious work against their will — a problem that will get even worse if Sidewalk’s plan to double the number of freelancers is successful.
This is just another example of the numerous flaws in Sidewalk’s plan for Toronto. It’s a plan designed by tech workers, for tech workers, when what Toronto really needs is for the government to work with residents to build a more inclusive city that provides the transit, housing, services, and stable jobs they need to thrive. Not only does the city not need Sidewalk to do that, but the tech company’s plan would push it in the wrong direction.
Want to know more about Sidewalk Labs’ project in Toronto? Check out some of the other articles I’ve written about the company’s anti-competitive practices and plan to subsidize rail-hailing services.
