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Work Futures Daily | Giving Something A Name
| Feudalism | Oz or Kansas | A New Bundle | Meritocracy Trap | The New Bundle | Brian Eno | Business Casual |
Beacon NY | 2019–09–18 | There is folk wisdom in the saying ‘naming calls’, a superstitious or mystical concept where mentioning something makes it more likely to happen or mentioning the ‘true name’ of some spirit or demon can actually summon it forth. But in the commonplace or barnyard sense, if you call a dog ‘Rex’, over time he will come when you call his name.
The names we give to things matter, so associating ride-hailing with feudalism, or pointing out that ‘meritocracy’ was originally pejorative, adds background to the discussions we are having about the future of work.
Stories
You Call It the Gig Economy. California Calls It ‘Feudalism.’ | Miriam Pawel provides deep background on California’s Assembly Bill 5. It wasn’t really about ride-hailing drivers, but old-fashioned delivery drivers. The court case behind it all is 14 years old, predating the app era:
Although the ride-share businesses Uber and Lyft were center stage in the run-up to the legislature’s votes, they were in fact not the impetus for the new law.
The bill was actually incited by a…
