‘Fifty Shades’ author E.L. James, shown signing autographs, has earned a fortune from her romance novels.
Reuters/Neil Hall
Few of them are getting rich off their books but the genre is making them more money than it used to.
Do women freelancers suffer the effects of ‘male privilege’?
Ryan Morse
Sexism has long been an unfortunate feature of the workplace, but is male privilege still a problem when the gig economy makes most of our office interactions virtual?
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With more Australian workers joining the gig economy, questions about how these workers will fare in their retirement are becoming more pressing.
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Uber’s business model suggests something has to give – either its imperial ambitions or its presence in markets which hold it to account.
Ride-hailing app drivers – partners or exploited labour?
Reuters/Beawiharta
Using technology and rhetoric, ride-hailing companies manage to dictate drivers while simultaneously creating the illusion of equal relation.
dennizn / Shutterstock.com
A rebellion against the technology which triggered the industrial revolution changed the way we understand technology.
Is Uber’s time up in London?
EPA/Will Oliver
Why Uber needs to address the values that are embedded in its technological success.
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When people get locked into the gig economy, it adversely affects other areas of their lives, from health to housing
Gig workers are characterised as contractors rather than employees, and are paid per delivery rather than per hour. That’s why certain visa restrictions don’t apply to them.
Charles Platiau/Reuters
Whether or not food delivery workers feel exploited is irrelevant, because they have few other options.
Is freelancing the future of employment?
Pixabay
Freelancing is hardly the glamorous, coffee-fueled industry shown on TV. In OECD countries, most gig workers are in the service sector.
Dreaming of ways to retire.
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With life expectancy stalling and austerity partly to blame, the UK must rethink its approach to retirement.
The uber pool of the 18th century.
James Pollard / Google Art Project
Prior to industrialisation in the 19th century, most people worked multiple jobs to piece together a living.
Sylvain Szewczyk/Flickr
Not only did trade union membership peak in the 1970s – so did their way of doing things.
Just gigging?
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An independent review of modern working practices looks destined to change very little for people stuck working in the gig economy.
The crunch for platforms will come when labour market conditions improve and workers have more alternatives.
Neil Hall/Reuters
Today’s manifestations of the gig economy are tilted in favour of too few beneficiaries, and are not built to last.
Gig workers saw their work as flexible but also with its risks.
Reynaldo Vasconcelos/Newzulu/AAP
A study shows the reality of gig worker experiences is far more nuanced than enjoying flexible work or being exploited.
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With no guarantee of work or pay, is the stress of flexible work contracts affecting the health of workers?
Will these changes really raise wages?
Topher Seguin/Reuters
The business models of the gig economy often stand in the way of implementing minimum wages or conditions.
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A universal basic income would enable people to embrace the gig economy and give them greater leverage in the jobs they choose.
Workers who feel they aren’t represented may look for another outlet to express their views. Protests in France demonstrate how violent these outlets can become.
Jean-Paul Pelissier/Reuters
A decline in union membership has left a void to be filled by a more chaotic movement - alt-unionism.