Yes (to all). As a society, we seem to have difficulty processing more than two options – everything is binary and that is no longer applicable and will not be applicable for our future society. This thinking is so embedded in everything. It requires a much bigger and deeper change.

Contract employment, like it is now. The gig economy works this way because it was built this way. Once you add in more stuff (permanency, unionization, etc.) the dynamics are going to change and it will crash and burn. Yes, we know there are issues – better screening may help those issues. Taking away the flexibility and independence will not fix those problems.

I keep hoping someone will innovate in this space and find a middle ground where protections are provided but gig workers do not have to become employees to be eligible for the protections. The flexibility is critical for those seeking a “side hustle” to supplement their income, while those seeking income equivalent to full-time employment typically need more protections. If this middle ground exists please let me know, as I haven’t heard of it yet.

There isn’t likely to be an ideal labor structure for gig workers. Gig workers have many reasons for doing what they do, and I suspect the flexibility aspect is high on the list for many. The challenge is that the more protections are put in place, the less flexibility the worker has, which undermines their reason for choosing the gig option.

I once cautioned a young man who was thinking of leaving his job and starting his own that the one downside was that even if it was a failure, he would never want to go work for someone again. To me one’s freedom is the most important value in the work experience.

However with regard to all gig workers there is no one ideal. It depends on personal situations. Unfortunately, the companies that have a business model based on the gig worker (by definition) are surely taking advantage of the desire or need for workers to have some flexibility.

There must be protections. They don’t have to be complex — basic income, healthcare, on the job protections. Of course if the U.S. had universal healthcare that would be no issue. How many fully employed workers would vote for freedom if healthcare wasn’t an issue?

Employers must have responsibility and not have business models based on taking advantage of workers.

Just plain contract employment. I really think the thing in California was way overblown. Yes, I think it’s in tune with the times to say “I’ll work when I feel like it.”

“Being your own boss” doesn’t mean you can pay your bills. These are workers, period full stop and they need to be treated as well as any other worker. What is billed as the “gig economy” is, too often, really the “gouge economy” from a worker’s perspective.

The relationship between workers, unions, and government regulations is very different in the European Union than in the U.S. What works in one area is not necessarily the best choice for another area. In the U.S., some gig workers like the flexibility and having control over when or how much they work. However that does not mean that employers should take advantage of the workers. If they work full time hours, they deserve to make a living wage and have full time benefits. If they choose to not be full time and to have more flexibility arrangements can certainly be made for employees working an average of 32 hours a week to receive a level of benefits, those working 20 hours a week on average could receive a different level of benefits, etc. with everyone receiving the same hourly wage. Then workers can still be in control of their choices but still be able to receive a living wage and proportionate benefits.

As any freelance writer knows all too well, gig work comes without fringe benefits and “flexibility” is a two-edged sword. It gets tricky to manage when several clients have overlapping and highly variable demands. It gets worse when clients withhold or alter payment without cause or recourse. Gig workers face similar challenges. I have noted many drivers with both Uber and Lyft decals in their windows. They are putting a living together by working for both services. Similar for DoorDash and Uber Eats delivery people. If this is today’s reality, which contract employer should be expected to provide health coverage and PTO? The definition of “full-time employment” gets slippery too, for workers paid by trip or per delivery. I believe freelancers of all kinds could benefit from “union” (or “co-op”) representation. In today’s world there should be an app for that — with built-in gig-tracking, access to fairly-priced group health insurance, disability coverage, and a way to accrue and consolidate PTO hours. All in proportion to the services delivered on behalf of each gig employer.… Read more »

One of the reasons GIG is successful is because of what it’s not. Strictly from a consumer perspective, once the concept transforms to employment, unions, and other developments that cause the service to be less flexible, more expensive, and more restrictive, it will start to lose some of its appeal. I’m sorry, but it’s true.