Manifesto #28/100: ?? The Gig Economy Was Supposed to Set Us Free. It Made Us Slaves!

?? Short Principle: "Work must empower the worker, not exploit them." ?????

The gig economy started as a promise: a new era of flexibility, independence, and opportunity for workers. ???? Freelancers, drivers, couriers, and creatives were promised the ability to work on their own terms, free from corporate bosses and rigid schedules. The dream was simple: be your own boss, set your own hours, and earn based on your effort.

But that dream was a lie.

Instead of freedom, tech giants hijacked the gig economy and turned it into a digital sweatshop where workers carry all the risks while billion-dollar platforms rake in obscene profits. Uber, DoorDash, Glovo, Bolt, Fiverr, and Upwork aren’t liberating workers, they are enslaving them.

?? The Reality:

• You own the car, but Uber owns your livelihood. ????
• You make the delivery, but Glovo makes the real money. ????
• You do the work, but Upwork and Fiverr take the biggest cut. ????
• You drive for Amazon, but their AI decides if you can put food on your table. ?????

These companies act as middlemen, skimming huge commissions while contributing nothing to the actual labor. The workers provide the service, yet the platforms make the most money.

This is modern digital feudalism! ??

?? The Gig Economy: A Rigged System Built on Exploitation

A handful of corporations dominate the gig economy, turning work into a race to the bottom:

• Uber, Bolt & Lyft: Marketed as “driver empowerment,” these platforms control pricing, take massive commissions, and ban drivers with no due process. They decide how much you earn, when you work, and when you’re out.
• Glovo, DoorDash & UberEats: Gig workers cover fuel, maintenance, and all expenses, while tech companies pocket profits and keep tips “mysteriously” disappearing. You take the risk, they take the rewards.
• Upwork & Fiverr: Freelancers compete in a global race to the bottom, with low wages, high platform fees, and algorithmic manipulation. Skills are devalued while platform owners get rich.
• Amazon Flex & Mechanical Turk: Amazon’s gig platforms turn human labor into disposable microtasks, pushing workers to accept inhumane pay rates just to compete with algorithms.

?? The gig economy isn’t broken by accident, it was designed this way.

Corporate platforms don’t exist to help workers thrive, they exist to extract maximum value with minimum responsibility. Unless we take back control, this model will define the future of work itself.

?? The Shift: How The Distributist Revolution Will Fix the Gig Economy

? Workers Must Own the Platforms They Rely On ??

• Why should a handful of billionaires control the apps workers depend on? Distributist labor platforms would be co-owned by workers themselves, with fair wages, shared profits, and democratic governance. ????

? Fair Compensation Through Market-Driven Ownership ??

• Gig workers should negotiate their own terms collectively, leveraging their ownership in worker-led platforms rather than relying on centralized tech giants. Instead of government-imposed wage mandates, a true free market driven by decentralized, worker-owned platforms will ensure fair compensation. ????

? Decentralized Payment Models ??

• Why should platforms take 30% of every gig? Blockchain and smart contracts allow direct payments between workers and clients, eliminating corporate middlemen. More money stays in the hands of the people actually doing the work. ????

? Worker Cooperatives Over Tech Monopolies ???

• The solution to platform greed is worker ownership. Imagine an Uber where drivers share in the profits. A Fiverr where freelancers run the platform. A DoorDash that puts couriers first. This is not utopia, it’s a model that already works. ????

? Algorithmic Transparency ??

• AI should work for workers, not against them. Gig workers must have access to fair, transparent algorithms, not be controlled by secretive black-box systems that determine their income. ????

??? A Future Where Work Works for Workers

?? Imagine:

• A world where gig workers collectively own and govern the platforms they work for. ????
• A system where no one is underpaid because an algorithm says so. ????
• A gig economy that empowers workers instead of exploiting them, where labor platforms distribute wealth fairly, not just to investors. ????

This isn’t a dream, it’s already happening. Worker-owned platforms, decentralized payment systems, and cooperatives are proving that a new model is possible. ?? The only question is: will we fight for this future or let Big Tech decide the fate of work? ?

?? The Battle for Work Begins NOW!

?? This is not just about fair pay, it’s about POWER! ??

The gig economy must work for the people who power it, not just the corporations that exploit it. The system is rigged against workers, but we will not be silent! We will not accept exploitation disguised as “flexibility.” We will not let tech billionaires steal our labor while we struggle to survive! If work is the foundation of wealth, then workers must own their share. ????

This is the time for action! The Distributist Revolution is not just an idea, it is the war cry of a generation tired of unfairness. The system has stolen enough from workers. Now we take it back!

?? Viva la Revolución! ?? - Assetto Team ?????