Millions of people in the UK make a living from gig economy platforms, but what rights would benefit these workers? While some praise the flexibility of the gig economy, others highlight the insecurity and safety risks it entails, which have only been amplified during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Gig workers are hard to research and diverse, having different backgrounds and varying in their attachment to gig work and dependency on particular platforms. The gig economy is also comprised of workers spread across different industries (ride hailing, food and parcel delivery, domestic work and digital services). This makes it difficult to discern what different gig workers actually think about their working conditions, what they want or who they feel represents them.
This British Academy funded project runs from May 1st 2021 to July 31st 2022. The project adopts an innovative survey methodology to reach distinct types of gig workers and makes use of multivariate techniques, such as regression and factor analysis, to identify the labour rights that different workers see as having potential to improve their lives. It will also facilitate a better understanding of which organisations workers feel best represent their interests in public and policy debates. Our survey design and the questions we ask gig workers are informed by our diverse advisory partners: the Trades Union Congress (TUC); the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA); the International Labour Organization (ILO); the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD); The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS).
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