Week of February 3rd, 2019 — This Week in the Gig Economy
In this publication of This Week in the Gig Economy, we’re covering topics ranging from the large trends in the Global Labour Market and the latest developments with large gig economy companies. Without further ado:
Gig Economy Development
Doordash and Amazon Flex are not willing to any changes after the Instacart tip theft controversy
Instacart, a $7.6 billion grocery delivery company, announced earlier in October that each and every driver will make at least $10 per delivery. Customer and shoppers didn’t realize that the tips were counting towards that minimum instead of being a bonus on top. So if someone tipped more, Instacart effectively had to pay less. In one case, Instacart ended only paying 80 cents to one of its drivers and the rest of the minimum being met with tips.
The company reversed its decision on Wednesday after public outcry, admitting that counting tips in its payout totals were “misguided” and has moved to a new pay scale that doesn’t factor in tips at all. But DoorDash and Amazon Flex, the contract workforce that delivers packages for Prime Now, continued to stand their ground.
Uber faces yet another lawsuit — this time with the lawyer who took on Brexit
The lawyer who spearheaded a landmark court case — which ended with the European Union’s top court ruling that the UK can unilaterally reverse Brexit — appeared in court on Wednesday for a fresh battle, this time with Uber.
Jolyon Maugham, who runs a group that raises money for lawsuits that promote a progressive agenda, says Uber should pay Value Added Tax, a 20% UK sales tax on most goods and services.
Uber says it doesn’t need to because it’s only acting as an intermediary between drivers and riders.
Trends in the Labour Market
Trump’s administration considers reexamining worker classification
The U.S Department of Labour plans to propose a rule that would reexamine worker classification and also, redefine who would come under the umbrella of labour protection and who is not.
Bloomberg Law broke the news that the department would be looking at the issue after a spokeswoman told the outlet it will update the joint employer rule and then look at worker classification.
In January, the National Labour Relations Board (NLRB) ruled that transportation service SuperShuttle was correct to label its driver as contractors rather than employees. The NLRB said it was considered an “entrepreneurial opportunity” since workers set their own schedules and have their own work vans.
Some are against this way of reexamining as they say it’s going to make it easier for businesses to exploit workers.
Paul Secunda, professor of law at Marquette University, said that although the department will likely argue that these workers are entrepreneurs, there isn’t necessarily evidence to suggest that is how they should be characterized. Due to low pay, some drivers work extraordinarily long shifts.
“Obviously employers want as many workers as possible to be independent contractors for the reasons that they don’t have to pay benefits, they are not subject to employment laws, and are at a real disadvantage bargaining with their employers,” Secunda said.
It will be interesting to see if the ripple effects of these changes will reach us in Canada. If you are interested in exploring both sides of the arguments on this topic, check out this article.
Staffing Industry Analyst predicts convergence of the traditional staffing industry and new online staffing platforms
SIA predicted increasing convergence between the staffing industry and new online staffing platforms and expects this will continue to be a key trend in 2019.
“As the online staffing marketplace continues to grow faster than the traditional staffing market, we expect many more staffing firms will be tempted to take advantage of the lower-cost business model offered by online alternatives, especially when many of their own temporary workers are getting additional income by complementing their temporary assignments with freelance gigs.” — The Staffing Industry Analyst
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