B2-31 · Your Boss Is an App: Life in the Gig Economy

Your Boss Is an App: Life in the Gig Economy

At seven in the evening, Marcus logs in. He is twenty-four, lives in Chicago and has three apps on his phone: one for food delivery, one for rides, and one for small jobs like assembling furniture. "I don't have a manager," he says. "I have a rating. If it drops below 4.6, I start getting fewer orders." Marcus is part of what is called the gig economy – a world of short, flexible jobs found through online platforms.

Freedom...

The word "gig" originally described a single performance by a musician. Today, millions of people around the world do "gigs": they drive for Uber or Bolt, deliver for Wolt or DoorDash, design logos on Fiverr or rent out rooms on Airbnb. Estimates vary, but in the United States, more than a third of workers have done some kind of freelance or gig work.

For many, the biggest attraction is freedom. "I choose when I work," says Lucie, a design student in Brno who takes small graphic-design jobs online. "When I have exams, I stop. When I need money for a trip, I work more. No one asks me why." Gig work can also be an easy way into the job market for people who might find it hard to get a traditional job, such as students, migrants or parents with small children. Some people use it to earn extra money on top of a full-time job.

...or insecurity?

The other side of the story is less attractive. Most gig workers are treated as independent contractors, not employees. That means they usually do not get paid vacation, sick pay or a pension, and in the United States they often have no health insurance through their work. If a driver's car breaks down, the repair is his problem. If a courier is injured in an accident, she may lose her income completely.

Pay can also be unpredictable. The apps decide prices using algorithms, and workers often do not know how much a job will pay until they accept it. "Some nights are great," Marcus explains. "Other nights I drive around for three hours and make forty dollars. After gas, that's nothing." Critics say that the platforms enjoy all the benefits of a large workforce without taking responsibility for it.

The fight over rules

Governments have started to react. In 2021, the UK Supreme Court decided that Uber drivers should be classified as "workers" with a right to the minimum wage and holiday pay. In 2024, the European Union approved a directive that should make it easier for platform workers to be recognized as employees when an app controls their work like a boss would. In California, on the other hand, voters in 2020 supported a proposal backed by the companies that kept drivers as independent contractors, with some extra benefits.

The platforms argue that strict rules would destroy the flexibility that workers value and make services more expensive for customers. Unions answer that flexibility is worth little if you cannot pay the rent.

What comes next?

The gig economy is unlikely to disappear. If anything, artificial intelligence may make more jobs "app-based" in the future, from translation to tutoring. The big question is whether new forms of work will come with new forms of protection.

For now, Marcus is not complaining too much. "It's good for this part of my life," he says. "I'm saving for college. But I wouldn't want to do this at forty." Then his phone buzzes: a new order, 2.3 miles away. He has fifteen seconds to accept.