What’s Going on in the Workforce
“…I got a knee injury. I couldn’t work for three months, and there was no sick pay from Deliveroo. I got a bit of statutory sick pay and my grandparents gave me £50 a week, but it soon became a beans on toast life.” Deliveroo & Uber drivers in the UK talk about their struggles with unpredictable income. “…it’s tough to make a living as a full-time driver since you lose a lot of the flexibility and earnings that make the job so desirable.” Can you make a living wage, as more and more people become ride-share drivers? (I bet the taxi drivers already know the answer to this question.)
Odd-job app Handy charges so many fees to its “Pros” (aka workers) that sometimes they’re just working to pay off their debt to the company. Yikes.
Nithin Coca takes a look at the strikes happening in gig economy companies across the globe.
Do workers who are overly-surveilled respond to it by trying even harder to cheat the system?
Millions of American workers believe they are bound by non-compete contracts, even when they live in states that won’t enforce them. The result? Lower wage growth & less economic mobility.
Organizing Theory
“…distributed organizing requires a commitment to build a support structure and to try out some new approaches.” Blueprint for Change, on distributed organizing.
If you only read one thing in this newsletter this week, make it this: TWU president of the local that represents Greyhound drivers pens amazing op ed about how ICE should stop boarding buses without probably cause or a warrant.
Sharing, Solidarity & Sustainability
Boston’s former CIO has some interesting thoughts about how to change the fees cities charge ridesharing services, to disincentivized traffic. Since a recent study found that nearly half of SF’s traffic woes were related to ride-hailing, this idea deserves serious consideration.