THE FUTURE OF JOBS

Taamara de Silva dissects the pros and cons of the gig economy

What was perceived as a side hustle only a couple of years ago has become a trillion dollar global industry, creating a new wave of disruption. The gig economy has resulted in reshaping existing service delivery channels through the adoption of digital technology by providing flexibility while minimising information asymmetry between both clients and workers.

In a post-pandemic world, many jobseekers will look to the gig economy as the modern-day saviour that they think it to be. But is that really the case?

It has been the best and the worst of times for many informal workers, depending on their roles. While lockdowns across the world have impacted drivers shuttling people across cities, others in warehouses and those delivering consumer goods and essentials, have had their hands full.

Physical work in shops and stores has dwindled; yet, a surge in digital services has generated new opportunities around fitness, education and recreation services.

Broadly defined, a ‘gig’ refers to the transitional and indefinite nature of a job. Therefore, the gig economy becomes a free market system where organisations and independent workers engage in short-term work arrangements.

Consultants, freelancers, independent contractors and temporary workers comprise the bulk of the gig economy. However, at its core are app based platforms that distribute work in bits and pieces, making deliveries, driving passengers or cleaning homes.

Despite generating massive economic benefits by democratising access to supply and demand, these platforms have also raised alarm bells on accountability, and led to calls for proper scrutiny on income recognition, data protection and anti-competitive business practices. Although temporary work and consultancy arrangements have existed in the past, the number of people with nontraditional jobs has grown at a staggering pace, predominantly fuelled by a rise in platforms that enable labour contracting as in the cases of Uber and Airbnb.

Employee demands and the increasing costs of fixed employment have forced companies to outsource a majority of processes to third party service providers in a bid to cut overheads and reduce the risk of engaging with human resources.


Proponents of the gig economy argue that there is a massive opportunity for startups and smaller businesses to expand, due to the low costs and scalability. It also enables more mature companies to tap into the vast pool of flexible workers who are willing to work at odd hours (i.e. beyond traditional work hours), thereby catering to the increasing scope and scale of product and service offerings.

In Sri Lanka, regional disparities in education and skills attainment – especially due to ethnicity and language – have created gaps in such models. Given this reality, decisive policy-making and action are needed to address education and skilling gaps, and shape the gig economy so that it may be equitable and inclusive. The infrastructure and legislature around worker protection must be reassessed.

Consumer awareness is driving demand for more sustainable products and services. The greatest potential for sustainability led opportunities lies in agriculture, renewable energy, waste management and tourism.

There is also an opportunity for gig workers in the healthcare economy as it’s less vulnerable to automation.

Due to the gig economy’s fluid nature, long-term relationships between workers, employers and clients could potentially erode, leading to issues around the sustainability of business models.

Success in the gig economy is the result of a balance between predictability and possibility. The ability to operate more from a place of choice rather than need has created significant appeal for the younger workforce – i.e. millennials.

Yet, its gruelling vulnerability has been exposed as gig workers not only lack protection and fair pay but the roles aren’t as flexible as they seem due to the need to work only when companies need them.

Since gig workers aren’t paid benefits such as holiday or sick pay, they may not even receive the minimum wage. This is legally possible since they’re not employees as they operate through platforms or contractors.

There is also a possibility that employers will try to pit gig workers against each other, swamping the pool of in demand employees with the millions of second class unemployed gig workers.

Overall, if the gig economy is to sustain and play a vital role in weaving the social fabric of the future, the traditional definition of employment must be changed to protect the interests of gig workers. This could well be the silver lining that the pandemic has to offer them.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause havoc, it remains to be seen if the fight for decent conditions and long-term labour reforms ultimately triumphs… or if the bargaining power  of these platforms is turned against gig workers as they struggle to find any job at any cost.