Even as the gig economy has caught on unfettered, an enabling environment, where workers would be encouraged to take up contractual jobs, can help it thrive.
The Covid-19 pandemic that forced the lockdown across most of the world, gave Gig Economy a shot in the arm as people cooped up at home began looking for a means of livelihood. It was a trend seen across the world and Gig Economy platforms had their hands full as people who had lost their sources of income scouted for opportunities to make a living. People across geographies began to offer their services that could be done over the Internet, on platforms that allowed businesses to hire anyone from anywhere, and anytime.
By leveraging the surfeit of technology tools like cloud, AI, Analytics at their disposal, they gave a fillip to customer experience in the shift towards exploiting the Gig Economy, where innovation is seen as the key to its future.
Perhaps for the first time the model was being seen feasible by many as a legacy business. Until then, employing the gig worker was generally seen among start-ups.
The pandemic exhibited that the world is indeed flat – a firm in Boston could connect with a freelancer in Bangkok to get a job done or a small business in Detroit could outsource its website design work to a web designer in Dhaka for a fraction of the cost at home. All the processes of briefing, price negotiations, delivery etc. are being facilitated by online portals and platforms are piggybacking on ICT.
Universal acceptance
Companies, across the world, have embraced the gig economy as it gives them a huge opportunity to find the right people, often, just for the crunch time. For the individual Gig Worker too, in a perfectly-competitive marketplace, this is a blessing with the contract being seen as ‘fairplay’. Also, the independent worker has the freedom to choose who he wants to work with. The firms are able to hire many specialised talents who can be contracted by the day or by the week.
Even as the Gig Economy has caught on unfettered, an enabling environment where workers would be encouraged to take up contractual jobs, can help it thrive.
Several marketplaces have emerged for gig workers to offer their services for on-demand work completion. Gig work provides meaningful employment avenues through gigs or part-time micro-jobs to many a job seeker, like fresh graduates. This is a kind of engagement many of the highly-qualified specialists today prefer. But, a question that’s catching the attention of many is: Would people work in the gig economy for life?
Fulfilling for many
Not everyone is keen on taking up gig work, full time. A section of professionals keen on taking up Gig Work are the software developers who prefer this way of working. For one, they are able to earn a lot, compared to the average wage earner. Very often, they enter into short contracts with companies for a period of a few months. It gives them an opportunity to work on the latest technologies and can even take time off after a high pressure project.
But, not many companies are open to the arrangement. Many companies find it a hassle when having to meet the statutory compliance. Many a professional, often a specialist, doesn’t want to join the formal system of a company at the outset till they have a chance to play a substantial role in the organisation.
Ultimately, the gig work must be a matter of choice and there must be the enabling infrastructure. With the Gig Worker facing numerous hurdles in their smooth functioning, the public, private and the non-profit sectors need to come together to face up to the issues afflicting them. This will ensure that they are provided with the requisite infrastructure. Private employers alone cannot fill the gap.
Speed bumps
The private employers today feel the pressure from both the workers and the customers to do more for these workers, and as a result, they risk turning the contractors into employees, which defeats the benefits of the relationship for both sides. While the employers are looking for the flexibility of using contractors on an ‘as and when they are needed basis’, the individuals are seeking the flexibility of looking to design their own working hours and thus be entrepreneurs.
https://cio.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/strategy-and-management/how-the-pandemic-is-rejigging-the-gig-economy-landscape/82758614
