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The news about @Uber potentially shutting down (temporarily) in California tonight should be cause for alarm for anyone partaking in the gig worker/freelance economy. Your job/hustle will be next.
incoming
incoming
The contention here is @Uber critics believe their IC's are oppressed by company for not having benefits, hence push to reclassify as employees. What critics fail to grasp is majority of Uber drivers like being independent contractors with flexibility. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/10/opinion/uber-ceo-dara-khosrowshahi-gig-workers-deserve-better.html
On the notion of benefits and gig worker attitudes on flexibility, here are some interesting stats via 2019 @Upwork survey.
*67 percent* of freelancers prefer to take home more pay to apply towards their own benefits. No where do they ask for collective bargaining/union rep.
*67 percent* of freelancers prefer to take home more pay to apply towards their own benefits. No where do they ask for collective bargaining/union rep.
As I've mentioned before, 2020 Democrat nominee Joe Biden has openly advocated for AB5 and PRO Act, CA bill and its national equivalent that would force IC's to reclassify as employees. https://www.forbes.com/sites/patrickgleason/2020/07/07/joe-biden-endorses-california-law-doing-harm-to-freelancers-which-democrats-hope-to-impose-nationwide/
And it's part of his 2020 platform. Scary. https://joebiden.com/empowerworkers/
And it's part of his 2020 platform. Scary. https://joebiden.com/empowerworkers/
This is an odd priority, no? Why quash freelancers? Unions are losing their luster and influence. Today, only 10.3% of workforce is unionized vs. 35% of workforce that freelances. Bingo! Regulate freelancers out of existence = strengthen obsolete political tool (used by Dems).
No matter your party affiliation, if you freelance or know someone whose primary income comes through freelancing, especially during pandemic, reclassification laws will hurt millions struggling to bounce back. Uber/Lyft are easy scapegoats. Rest of us IC's are next.
To those eager to regulate freelancers out of exist, let us speak for ourselves:
We aren't oppressed.
We voluntarily choose this lifestyle (not out of coercion, but out of self-interest).
We like to keep more of our money.
We like to boast multiple revenue streams.
/fin
We aren't oppressed.
We voluntarily choose this lifestyle (not out of coercion, but out of self-interest).
We like to keep more of our money.
We like to boast multiple revenue streams.
/fin
