TOL VIEWS
The sad chapters of world history during the Covid-19 pandemic surely taught humankind to be more resourceful and creative. The restrictions on people’s mobility and interaction pushed the world to find unconventional means to procure goods, to transmit knowledge and information and to contract services needed to ensure the continuity of communities and the life of the world.
The birth of work from home, virtual meetings, online shopping and such other platforms that use internet connectivity also gave birth to what is widely called now as gig economy. Technological advancements that seamlessly connect people from all parts of the world has revolutionized the ways by which individual workers provide clients with services regardless of distance or time difference. The flexibility of gig economies and the wider opportunities to earn from the use of individual knowledge and skills fuelled the rapid growth of gig economies, not only in the Philippines but more so, worldwide.
Workers under gig economies are at liberty to choose the amount of time they work, when they work, the kind of work they do, the number of clients they can engage, and the rates they charge for their services, among others. These conditions are particularly appealing to people who juggle between work and other responsibilities. Gigs are also helpful in supplementing income for increasing household needs. Workers in gig economies only need a laptop or desktop and internet connection to be able to offer specialized services to clients wherever they are in the world. What makes gig economies appealing is that workers will no longer have to leave their houses and travel to work, to be confined inside offices eight hours a day, and abide by company policies and regulations.
Companies primarily benefit from gig economies because they are able to do away with the usual expenses on office rentals, utility bills, procurement and maintenance of office equipment, and employees’ benefits, among others. Cost savings now translate to increased business profitability.
Gig economies, however, are often challenged by issues on worker protection, benefits and security of tenure. As private individual service providers contracted for a particular type of task or work, gig workers are not entitled to the benefits that regular company workers enjoy such as health care insurance and leave credits. Their rights and privileges, therefore, are not guaranteed by labor laws and policies, making them highly vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. For companies on the other hand, there is a higher probability of workers turnover. Quality standards of services and goods are likewise affected by temporary and transient workforce.
Whether the world likes it or not, gig economies will continue to grow and permeate global businesses in the days to come. What is important at this point is that we strike a balance between the threats and opportunities presented by gig economies, and allow human societies to continue evolving, adapting, innovating.