What does the gig economy mean for the future of work?

Welcome back to the Evolving Workplace Newsletter, where we will explore the changing nature of teams, collaboration, and the future of work.?

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In my last newsletter, we covered “Who benefits from working from home? ” Autonomy and flexibility are major factors in why many people don’t want to be confined to an office. This week, we’re exploring what it means to work in a field that boasts autonomy and flexibility above all else: gig work.?

In Eric M. Anicich’s Harvard Business Review article, Dehumanization is a Feature of Gig Work, Not a Bug , he documents his time as a driver for popular gig platform Postmates as well as interviews with people working for other companies like Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, Grubhub, and Instacart. His findings are, unfortunately, not too surprising. Gig work is often barely profitable—requiring clever planning, expert timing, and generous tippers to make above minimum wage. It treats workers like commodities, erasing their humanity. In the title of his article, he highlights his argument that the gig economy is built to be this way.?

Anicich extends his study beyond low-wage gig workers to freelancers, the rise of whom has essentially allowed employers to rent rather than buy talent. He says, “From this perspective, the 40 million Americans who have rented out their services to technology platforms like Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash may be canaries in the coal mine of the new world of work.”?

Anicich is not the first person to write about this. Way back in the ancient days when I was a grad student, my old advisor, Steve Barley, wrote a book with Gideon Kunda called Gurus, Hired Guns, and Warm Bodies: Itinerant Experts in a Knowledge Economy . He found very highly skilled engineers who were opting to work as contingent workers because of the flexibility that it offered them, long before there were platforms that facilitated this kind of freelancing or the term “gig economy” was coined.

We can’t discount how attractive autonomy and flexibility are for people seeking gig and freelance work. Doesn’t everyone dream of working for themselves? In “What if the Great Resignation is a good thing? ,” we unpacked how important it is to have goals and aspirations at work that align with your priorities for your life. Isn’t the most efficient and reliable way to pursue those goals in your career to work for yourself?

In Rakesh Bohra and Jyotsna Bhatnagar’s Harvard Business Review fictionalized case study, One Employee Went Freelance. Now Everyone Wants the Same Deal , they cover the pros and cons of what allowing an employee to go freelance means for companies. When their head of creative services chooses to leave to start his own agency (seeking more autonomy and flexibility and pursuing his dream of running a company), they support him and become his first customer. They’re met with an unforeseen challenge when other employees start lining up to follow his lead.?

On one hand, John H. Chuang, who is referenced as an expert in the article, says supporting an employee who wants to break out on their own will “attract more talent, foster greater loyalty, build a better culture, and produce more-creative work by letting others follow suit.” He argues that the gig economy is the future of work, and fighting it will not serve the company, as both freelancers and full-time employees, particularly creatives and young people, “will flock to an organization that offers flexibility, independence, consistent work, and the opportunity to collaborate with many different coworkers.”

On the other hand, Craig Millon, the other referenced expert, argues that, while he is not against using contractors, companies should do everything in their power to retain their employees on a full-time basis. He says it’s hard to maintain things like “community, culture, consistency, and commitment—when you rely heavily on freelancers.” In order to do that, companies must highlight and communicate all of the perks of being a full-time employee: “a sense of togetherness, training and development, leadership opportunities, more choice of projects, and the chance to work directly with clients.”

Regardless of how both companies and individuals choose to navigate the gig economy, it is here to stay. So where does it fit into the future of work? As Anicich theorizes, how far will the dehumanization of workers extend beyond low-wage jobs? As with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, don’t certain conditions, including job security, need to be met before we can be our most innovative and creative selves? Or will the compelling draw of autonomy and flexibility be enough?

The world is changing, and so is the workplace. Subscribe to The Evolving Workplace Newsletter to learn more about the changing nature of teams, collaboration, and the future of the workplace, or connect with me via email: [email protected] .